Down To Earth
by jovigirlx12x
Summary: A Hollywood Heights fan fic starting after episode 153 when Loren and Eddie are at MK after her photo shoot! I know this won't keep up, so will be making my own story line separate from the show after this chapter! Leddie!
1. Chapter 1

**This first chapter starts after episode 153...some things that I just thought about during the day, and decided to turn them into a story.**

"You know you're nothing like her, right?"

Eddie' words broke Loren's blank stare at his gorgeous face. She focused, and saw him lean in with his eyebrows raised slightly. His face wore his beautiful smile, making her heart jump a few beats. "Who?" she asked, confused.

"Chloe..." he replied, hesitant.

Eddie was replied to with a simple "Oh, right..." from Loren. She was getting tired of Chloe being brought up all the time. She thought after he took off, he would stop seeing her. He left because he wanted to stop thinking about her after all.

Loren ran a hand through her now longer hair and tilted her head slightly. She rested her chin in her palm, her elbow on the table, and sighed.

"Loren, that wasn't meant to bring her up again... I just love how unlike her you are. You are sweet, caring, beautiful, down to earth...and she was none of that. I thought Chloe was my type, but you are." Eddie sounded hurt, but Loren really didn't care anymore. He was so amazing; perfect for her. And it still shocked her that the big rock start thought she was good enough for him. But every day is something new with Chloe involved...

_It's almost like he's still dating her..._ she thought. She pushed her chair back and stood, Eddie matching quickly.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Nothing... Look, Eddie, I go back to school the day after the concert...that's only another day of spring break. I need to take care of some things at home. Is it okay if you take me home now?" She felt her stomach ache. All she really wanted right now was to relax at home and invite Mel over for the night. She needed to clear _her_ head this time.

"Sure..." Eddie replied, looking like he was a deer caught in the headlights of a speeding car. "Is there any way you'd want to stay over...? Tonight...?" Whatever was bothering her he needed to fix.

"You know, I promised Mel I'd see her tonight...her dad and everything..." her voice trailed off and Eddie gave in.

The two drove back to Loren's in silence. Eddie asked the driver to wait and walked Loren up to her door like he always did. He grabbed her hand as they walked and felt her smile just a little bit. This made him happy; he hadn't seen that since they had left dinner.

They stopped at her door and Eddie waited patiently while Loren unlocked the door. _Mom must be out..._ she thought.

"Hey," Eddie said quietly and pulled Loren towards him. He smiled his beautiful smile again and Loren wished she was anywhere else. She knew that would get to her like nothing else would, and she felt her world stop instantly around her as he hugged her around her waist. She felt his heart beat as she stood, pressed against his chest, and felt his hands in the small of her back.

As soon as she looked up, he leaned down to kiss her. He didn't push for anything other than a simple, lingering touch. When he pulled away from her lips, Loren saw his eyes sparkle and was simply speechless.

"I can't wait for tomorrow," he said softly as she walked slowly into her house and began to shut the door with a smile.

"Yeah, me either..." she whispered.

Loren was about to close the door when Eddie's hand stopped her. "Loren," he began, and her heart started racing. After being so still, she felt like she was going to pass out. Eddie's voice was so smooth and it got her wanting him against her again so quickly it wasn't even funny.

Eddie looked flustered, and Loren felt like she was falling. _Is he going to tell me...?" _she thought, each word struggling to come to her head.

"Goodnight," he finished, and she crashed hard.

"Oh, goodnight," she replied with a forced smile, and finally let the door close between them.

**Please read and comment and such and if everyone actually likes this, I might post more chapters with MUCH more Leddie scenes...there has to be a makeup sometime! ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for all the interest so quickly! Will be writing all weekend to keep everyone interested!**

****

Loren called Mel as soon as she got to her room and changed out of her clothes and into something comfy for bed. She needed her, but she understood if she had to stay with her dad.

There was no answer, so she decided to find out where her mom was.

After three rings, Nora picked up. "Hi sweetie," she said.

Background noise flooded the speaker and Loren had to move the phone away until it adjusted. "Mom? Where are you?" she asked.

"I'm at MK...with Max."

"With Max? But you were supposed to be with Don?" Loren was confused; she hoped her mom was okay.

"Well I was...but then some things happened and, well, listen honey, I'll tell you about it later; I want you to get some sleep for your big day tomorrow! I'll be back late tonight, so don't stay up."

Nora hung up, and Loren sighed and set her phone down. Ever since Don asked Nora to work up to that manager position, she had been spending nights out late with Max. It's a good change from Don, but she wanted to know just what was going on in that love circle!

A beep broke her thoughts, and she saw a message from Mel that she was coming. She had_ a lot_ to tell her.

When Melissa finally arrived, she rushed in through the front door and made her presence known.

"LO!" she yelled, running to her room. "Loren, I definitely want to hear your problems, but this is major! Beth is my _mother_! And Lisa hid all of this for so long and I can't even be around any of them right now, not even my dad! Who, _is_, by the way, my actual dad."

Melissa fell onto Loren's bed next to her and screamed into the pillow. Loren, who sat up when Mel came running in, stared wide eyed and confused.

"Mel..." she said sadly. "I am _so_ sorry! All of this really sucks-wait, how did you find this all out?!"

"I found my birth certificate..." she said blatantly. "I'm so pissed, Lo. Do you mind if I stay with you and Nora for a few days?"

"I don't; just make sure we don't get Lisa on my doorstep though, please!" Loren knew that both she, Nora, _and _Mel did not want to be involved in anything with Lisa.

"Don't you get it, Lo?" Mel asked, frustrated. "That's why Phil is the good one!"

"It makes perfect sense-wait, but your dad slept with your mom's _sister_?!" Loren was astonished. Oh, how her problems with Eddie seemed _so _simple now.

"Ew, ew, ew, _no_! Okay, I'm done. _Please_ just keep me from thinking about all of this for tonight! My head hurts like no other, and I will just go all Chloe on Adam and teat him so wrong just because I'm frustrated if I see him right now, and-"

Loren cut her off with a hug and smiled. "Just chill. How about I make some coffee and we can stay up and talk tonight? I doubt I can sleep anyway; the concert tomorrow has me so freaked out!"

For once, Mel laughed. "Why? Your sexy little lover boy will be there the entire time. He helped you during his concert...you can't seriously tell me he won't do that this time."

"It's a long story," Loren said with a half smile and let her shoulders relax.

The two talked for a long time, mostly about Loren's nervousness about the following night. Surprisingly, Melissa seemed to be fine with everything she had just found. Loren knew her too well, though, and she knew she would explode to her when she was ready.

"How is your amazing life with Eddie?" Mel finally asked. "He nearly ate your face off at the club earlier!"

"_Hey!" _Loren laughed. "We just kissed.

"Mhmm, sure you did. Eddie walked in all 'where's Loren?' and as soon as he spotted you he just went up and _bam_, lip locked!" Melissa giggled as she watched Loren's cheeks redden; she knew she was embarrassed.

"Mel!" Loren looked down and slowly her smile faded, which caught Melissa's attention immediately.

"Lo, what's up?" she asked her best friend. "You don't seem too happy..."

"Well, truthfully, I have a problem. That's why I wanted you over tonight..." Loren looked back up and pushed her hair out of her face with a hand. She let out a long breath and tried to smile her issues away.

"Okay, so spill..." Mel ordered.

Loren, rolling her eyes, tried to find the right words to start with. "Well..." she said. "Remember how I told Eddie I loved him? And everything I told you about spending the night with him at the bungalow?" Mel nodded feverously, so she continued. "Well, ever since then, it's all about...Chloe." She said Chloe's name with so much disgust, she almost couldn't believe it came out of her mouth.

"Someone's jealous?" Mel asked innocently.

"Well, that's what Eddie said at dinner, but it's not that, really. It's more...just, he just dropped the fact that I said that to him, you know? And I just want a day...without Chloe. It's kind of like she's still one of his favorite people, even though he keeps telling me he wants nothing to do with her. Maybe he should just tell her and the rest of the world that we're together and maybe she'll stay away."

Loren got more and more frustrated throughout her entire rant, and Mel realized this was happening right away.

"Hush, don't worry. He'll come around. If not, you don't need him, Lo! You're awesome, and if he's not in love with you by now, he's not worth it. For the record though," Mel added, "have you seen the way he looks at you? He's completely in love with you, he just hasn't figured that out yet."

Loren smiled, thankful that she had Melissa as her friend. "I guess..."

"Let's go make that coffee that we agreed on hours ago," Mel suggested with a smile back.


	3. Chapter 3

**Last one for tonight...I'll try to get more posted tomorrow!**

It was nearly noon by the time Loren's alarm finally went off and woke her up.

"Oh no!" She had overslept.

The last thing she remembered was telling Mel about her Eddie problems. She must have fallen asleep quickly after that. She got up and walked to the living room, not seeing Melissa anywhere. Looking into the kitchen, she noticed the coffee pot still full. _We must have forgotten..._ she thought.

Then, her phone rang from the other room, making her jump a little.

On her way back to her room to see who was calling, she noticed Nora was still out. She must have stayed at MK... After all, Loren had to be there for the show tonight.

"Hello?" she answered.

Mel was on the other end of the line, frantic. "Lo? Where _are_ you?"

Loren let out a big yawn before she replied. "I just got up..." She checked herself out in the mirror; her hair was a mess and she was sleeping in one of Eddie's shirts. She must have missed him at some point... "I think I really crashed last night; I can't remember a thing!"

"Yeah, you did- but listen, you were supposed to be here an hour ago! The makeup and hair stylists are waiting, and they need you for a sound check ASAP!"

Panicking, Loren hurriedly picked from clothes from her closet to wear on the ride to the club. "Ah, I must have overslept! I don't think I ever set my alarm to the right time for today!"

"Just get here, okay?" Mel said. Loren knew she was being hard on her just to get her there so she could start filming her friends walk to fame.

"I'm coming. I'll be on my way in five."

"Okay, see you soon!"

"Mel, wait!" Loren said, trying to catch her before she hung up.

"Yeah?"

"Is my mom there? She never came home last night. Last thing I heard was that she would be back late and she was out with Max..." Loren was starting to get worried about her mom, which amused her. It was almost like they switched places and Nora was the child.

"Oh, yeah, she's here. Did she stay with Max? Huh? Uh oh, the Duran's and the Tate's are such cute lovers!" Melissa's voice was light and joking, and Loren rolled her eyes at her friends unnecessary comment.

Loren finished her conversation with Melissa and grabbed her bag before heading to the club. On the way, she thought about last night. She felt stupid because she almost asked Mel if Eddie was there too, but of course he was; he was playing the concert with her tonight!

She was unsure of what she was going to say to him, and by the time she arrived at MK, she settled on the "the less talk the better" plan. She would tell him she's not feeling well because of nerves, and that she needed to rest. Knowing Eddie, he would want to help, but hopefully...

"Hello there, Loren Tate!" she heard a familiar voice call as she stepped into the parking lot. Her thoughts evaporated into thin air as she realized who it came from.

Eddie was standing there, obviously waiting for her, in a nicely fitting black tee and his tight jeans that showed just how cute his butt really was. She loved this look; it made it hard not to think about Eddie Duran being her boyfriend. _The _Eddie Duran.

"Hey," she replied casually.

"I was getting worried, what happened?" he asked, sincerely concerned. His eyes shone with interest, and Loren knew there was no avoiding him today.

"I slept in, that's all. Long night..." she mumbled.

"Is everything okay, Lo? You ran out of there pretty fast last night..." Eddie still looked hurt; she had hoped he would stop looking so nervous by today because it killed her knowing she was doing this to him. She was ready to tell him she was fine when he grabbed her hand and tried to pull her towards him for a welcoming kiss. That was when she snapped.

"No, not really," she began. Something inside of her flared up. She knew she wouldn't really be mean; that's just not in her nature; not unless she was talking to Adriana or Chloe anyway.

Eddie looked taken aback and stood there, breathless. "Well do you want to talk about it?" he managed to ask, hoping it wasn't serious.

"Not really, no," she said shortly. "I really don't want to hurt you, Eddie. I mean that. But sometimes you still manage to hurt me, and it's all because of Chloe. I'm not jealous anymore, I'm just sick. Sick of listening to her still be part of your life. I've seen people try to be friends with exes before, and it just doesn't happen. And I know that's what she wants, so she won't stop until you agree to that. Then, she'll try to get you back. It's the more subtle approach this time, because her obvious one didn't work out the way she wanted it to."

Eddie stood, confused as ever, and listened to Loren finish her rant. "Loren..." he started, finally sounding a bit ashamed of himself. "You know I don't love her anymore. I don't want her in my life; she means nothing to me. I just have to get her to understand that so she'll stop harassing me! You're my girl; you're the one I care about."

Every part of Loren knew he meant that, which is why it killed her to say what she had to say next.

"Really? Is it some secret between you and me, then? Because I seem to be the only one you're telling. Maybe if half the world knew you liked me as much as you say you do, Chloe would just leave!"

With that, she let out a big sigh and started walking to the entrance, passing through security on her way. Eddie stood, watching her walk away. He had never been so speechless in his life. He tried to take in what she said, but before it all even sank in, he knew he would lose her if something didn't change, and she was right.


	4. Chapter 4

The concert didn't go as smoothly as Eddie wanted it to. Loren spent most of rehearsal time by herself; the last thing she wanted was to hear advice that Eddie had to give her. As stupid as this was, she knew she might accidentally snap at him like she did earlier. She knew she had hurt him, and she was truly sorry for it. Maybe if she took a few days to sort it all out, she would get over it and could go on being happy having him and ignoring the fact that Chloe even existed.

After talking to Max and Nora at MK before the fans were allowed in, Eddie came to the same conclusion; he would give her some space for the night, while still making the best of this amazing opportunity for the both of them.

As promised, Eddie played a few hits to begin with, so Loren wouldn't have to "open" for him. When it came time to call her onto the stage, he decided he would play acoustic to _Mars_ so she might feel a little more comfortable in the spotlight. Luckily, she agreed shyly while the microphones were off and they were setting up her stage.

"Sure," Loren said sweetly, trying to keep Chloe off her mind.

"I just figured it would be like when you recorded," Eddie explained. "You sang so well then, and this way my fans won't abuse you and beg for me back," he laughed. Loren smiled shyly, knowing he was kidding, but also knowing that he was right at the same time.

Loren received a standing ovation from the crowd; Eddie remembered the fan at Rumor knowing who she was and he wasn't surprised. Loren's innocent "thank you!" at the end of her song made her blush and look around the club, amazed at how many young girls were her fans as much as Eddie's fans.

Before Loren went back to backstage, Eddie wanted to announce her one more time so the crowd members who didn't know who she was would surely remember her.

"Give it up for the amazing, talented, miss Loren Tate!" he yelled into the mic while raising her one hand in the air like a winning wrestler.

Loren chuckled and Eddie was ecstatic to see her happy again after earlier. He wanted to prove it to her that he cared for her more than Chloe, so he looked at her until she looked back. He knew what he was about to do would go completely viral in a matter of seconds, but he didn't care. However, just as he was about to kiss her, he caught a glimpse of blond hair in the back of the room. Hi heart dropped and he became instantly frustrated.

Loren's smile faded and she turned to see what he was looking at. She knew it was Chloe, but something else was more interesting that kept her from being too mad at Eddie; Chloe was with _Adriana_.

To avoid getting bad reviews, Loren held her head high and bowed, saying thank you one more time. Eddie caught on and sat back down at the piano, wishing he didn't have to watch Loren walk slowly off the stage and away from him.

Chloe was so amused that she couldn't hold back her conniving grin. "Looks like little Loren doesn't like Eddie staring at me," she laughed, turning to Adriana.

"Yeah," Adriana replied. Her eyes were wide with awe as she looked around MK. Though she acted like she was important enough to be here, she never had been. Don could have easily taken her one night when he went to have drinks with Max, but she knew how little her dad cared about her. "So, where are those modeling agents?" she asked, remembering why Chloe had brought her here tonight. "You said you set up that meeting, remember?"

"What?" Chloe said, obviously not listening. "Oh, right. The meeting... They're around here somewhere, we just have to look," she said, trying to be reassuring. "Why don't you wait here while I go try to find them," she offered.

Adriana just nodded okay, part of her knowing that this was a complete mistake. However, she stayed in place, at least giving Chloe a little bit of time to prove that maybe, just maybe, she had set up a meeting. After all, she _had_ complemented Adriana so nicely.

As the minutes flew by, she listened to Eddie's new songs, stuck in thought. After ten minutes of waiting, she decided to look herself, and tried to make her way closer to the stage. That was when she caught Chloe sitting at a table with Max, trying to get him to give her information about Eddie. She could easily read her lips from where she was standing, so she stepped to the side and tried to blend in as best she could with the other people around her who were crying out Eddie's name.

"Look, Max, Eddie agreed to invite me tonight," Chloe argued.

"Are you kidding, Chloe?" Max laughed in anger. "You seriously think I don't know who he does and does not put on the approved list for the night? You were never approved!"

"Please, then tell me why the security let me in," she said, throwing her long, curled hair over her right shoulder.

"Because you a sneaky little girl who's coming close to proving it to the world that she is going psychotic." Max rolled his eyes, and got up, leaving Chloe alone. Chloe watched him walk towards the bathroom, where Nora Tate was walking from. She watched Nora put her hand on his shoulder and ask if everything was okay in disgust.

Adriana gasped, realizing how stupid she was for believing Chloe Carter had actually wanted to help her modeling career. She really _was_ a witch; how dare she lie to such an important person like Adriana. She wanted to ruin Loren as much as Adriana did, but Adriana was set on ruining someone else right now; Chloe. She stormed out of the club and headed home. This was the only chance she would have at modeling, and Chloe had completely used her. This was the last person she should have picked to lie to.


	5. Chapter 5

Loren woke to her alarm bright and early the next morning. _So much for sleeping in,_ she thought to herself, upset that spring break had officially ended. Her senior year was coming so close to an end. She would miss high school, but she knew her career would be far more exciting than the drama between the valley folks and the rich kids.

She rushed home with Nora the night before, knowing Eddie would want to talk. It wasn't his fault Chloe showed up, but he didn't have to forget Loren was there either. She would call him to apologize later, but she needed a good night's sleep to get away from this all and get ready for the painfully long day back at school.

Mel was surprising there; Loren thought she might take some time off after her massive discovery. However, when she thought about it, it made sense; school meant she wouldn't be at home with Gus and Lisa.

The day progressed slowly, just as Loren knew it would. She caught herself daydreaming through her classes...mostly about Eddie. At one point she stopped loving him for just being a great guy and though about the fact that she was dating _Eddie Duran_. _Rock star_ Eddie Duran. Chills went through her body as she realized that just a short time ago, she was wishing she even had a chance to see him at his big concert at the end of his tour.

When she walked through the halls after each class, she tried to ignore the stares from all of Eddie's fans. She was holding her breath, hoping she wouldn't have to answer more questions about him for them.

Finally, during her lunch break, Loren met up with Melissa.

"Hey, how are you holding up?" she asked her best friend, knowing she must be as confused as she was two days ago.

"Surprisingly, I'm okay," Mel answered, seeming perfectly happy. "I think I might try to talk to Lisa later... I'm coming around to the fact that she is more my mom than Beth would ever be, but part of me wants to be able to know Beth still. At least have the family back together."

Loren was caught off guard by Mel's sudden positive outlook on the situation and her family in general. "Well that sounds really good, Mel!" Loren was sincerely happy for her.

"And guess what else," Melissa replied in a sing-song voice, purposely changing the topic.

"What?" Loren asked, genuinely curious.

"Adam asked me to prom! Well, kind of," she replied.

"Kind of?"

"Well, I kinda told him that it was coming up and the theme _is_ the VMA's...and that he should totally take me because I look seriously hot in this red dress I have my eye on..." Melissa giggled, but Loren didn't miss her shot at Eddie and Loren.

"Mel..." Loren warned. "I don't really think I'm going to prom," she said. "I'm too busy...and it's just not my place. Plus, Eddie doesn't even know about it, and if he did, could you imagine how bad it could end up?" she rambled on about the press and the girls at their school and her horrible dancing skills.

"Well, _anyway_," Mel continued. "Adam said he'd have to buy a tux to match, and that just pretty much made it a done deal!" She was excited, and there was no hiding that.

"Aw, well I'm happy for you two," Loren told her.

"You know, you and Eddie _will_ be on the VMA's once his video is released...you'd be perfect for the theme!"

"Mel!" Loren laughed, ending the conversation. "I'll see you later, okay? I need to get to class early to ask a question."

With that she left, but not before Melissa came up with one of her famous devious plans. "Well, Loren, if you won't say anything, I will."

Since the night of the party at Loren's house a few weeks ago, Melissa knew she had to program Eddie's number into her phone for more of the same reasons. Without wasting another minute, she pulled out her phone and looked up Eddie's number and hit dial.

"Eddie?" she asked when he answered. "It's Mel..."

Eddie was hesitant at first, but once Mel dished out what was bothering Loren, he let her get to the point. She and Eddie developed a plan to get Loren to come around, and that made her feel more accomplished than ever.


	6. Chapter 6

The rest of the day flew by after talking to Mel. Loren found herself daydreaming about Eddie and prom during her last few classes. She knew she was never the type for dances, but she also knew how much fun she had rehearsing with Eddie on his video set. Anything could be fun with him.

She decided she should call him and apologize for her behavior lately when she got home. First she wanted to see what Mel thought of that idea for support.

After her last class, she found Melissa again and the two sat at a table in the courtyard, where all the kids roamed before driving or catching a bus home.

The table next to them seated Adriana and her friend Kim. They were whispering about something, glaring at anyone who walked by and might have heard. Adriana caught Loren's gaze and sneered. "What are _you_ looking at?"

Loren didn't reply, but laughed and tried to listened to Mel telling her her ideas for when she got home and was able to talk to Lisa about getting to know Beth more.

"Maybe I'll tell Lisa I want to make sure Beth doesn't know I know she's my mom. Then, maybe Beth will want to know me more..." Melissa never kept eye contact when she was thinking. When she finished, she let out a breath, rested her shoulders, and looked at Loren for an answer.

"I think you might want to think about that some more," Loren answered, giving Mel her honest opinion. "I mean, if Beth wants you to know she's your mother, maybe things could be different..."

"Maybe..." Mel said, finishing her trail of thoughts in her head.

The two ended their conversation to the many gasps of girls around them. The courtyard was suddenly quieter than usual.

Melissa poked Loren's arm with her jaw on the ground, letting out one short laugh. "Lor-en," she sang. "Somebody is here to see you!"

"Huh?" Loren asked, confused.

She turned her head to the direction everyone else was looking and saw Eddie Duran making his way across the courtyard to her. His hands were in his pockets, and his tight tee shirt clung to his chest perfectly. His hair was styled perfectly; Loren could tell her did his best to look perfect for her on purpose.

"Mel," Loren hissed under her breath. "What did you do?!"

"Who said this was me?!" Melissa replied, but Loren could tell that she was hiding something. She let it go for now; she would get her payback later.

Loren tried to ignore making eye contact with Eddie, hoping for some reason he would be here for someone else. She hadn't planned out what she wanted to say to him yet. She felt stupid for thinking this, because he didn't _know_ anyone else at her school.

"Hello there, miss Loren Tate," Eddie greeted her.

The kids in the courtyard all stared at Loren. They knew she was working with Eddie, but that was it. Loren looked around, aware of how jealous they all were. She heard whispers of "that's Eddie Duran!" and "what's he talking to her for?" go around the crowd.

"Hey...Eddie..." she replied, picking her words carefully. "What's up?"

"Well, a lot of things," he began. "First off, I wanted to tell you that I am going to hire more security to keep Chloe out of my life. I thought that would be the least that I could do for you."

"Oh..." Loren was completely shocked by this. She knew she was direct about how she felt about Chloe the other night, but she didn't expect Eddie to be so serious about it.

Knowing Loren was relaxed a little more, Eddie walked closer to her, sitting next to her at the table. He smiled slightly at the murmurs that were going on around them. He didn't want to embarrass Loren, but she was right. She wanted the truth to come out, and that's what he was going to do.

"Loren, look at me for a minute?" he asked sweetly. He smiled and lifted her chin with his hand. She was looking down, embarrassed to be in the spotlight. "I expected this to be a bit easier on you, especially after you took the spotlight so well at the concert."

"I'm fine," Loren replied, looking up at him. She tried to sound reassuring.

Eddie let his half smiled show and looked directly into her eyes. "Loren, I want you to know that I care about you too much to let you be so hurt by Chloe and what she wants from me. It's my fault that I wasn't taking it seriously, but I am now."

"Eddie, really, it's fine," she said. With that, she stood. "I have to go, I told my mom I would go shopping with her tonight. She said she needs 'date clothes'." Loren rolled her eyes, laughing at her own joke.

She turned to leave, but Eddie had other plans. He grabbed her hand, not letting her go. "Loren," he playfully scolded. "Come on, this isn't like you. A few days ago, you were determined to prove to me that you coming to the bungalow was a good idea. Just listen." Eddie stood and pulled Loren against him, his face inches from hers. "Please?" he asked in a whisper.

His voice made her shiver and she had to give in; even the girls in the crowd of students around them nearly fainted at how smooth he sounded.

"Loren, please forgive me?" he asked, almost begging. "Don't make me do something really stupid," he joked.

"Oh yeah," she laughed. "Like what?"

"Like this," he said in a serious tone, before he put his right hand on the back of her head and pulled her in for a kiss.

Loren's fellow students were all in shock, except for Melissa. She was laughing beyond control. Adam had come over right before Eddie had shown up, and was now trying to keep his spaztic girlfriend calm.

Loren responded to Eddie's kiss by wrapping her arms around his neck and smiling into the kiss. She felt his lips curve into a smile as well, and they broke, laughing.

"I'm sorry," she told him before he could talk. "I acted so stupidly, and I wanted to tell you that tonight, but I was just still so confused!"

"Shh," Eddie shushed her. "I'm not done yet, silly."


	7. Chapter 7

"Oh no," Loren said. She was uneasy about what Eddie might have to say now.

"What?" Eddie laughed.

Loren was about to reply, but Adriana's voice interrupted. "Why do you want _her_?" She demanded an answer from Eddie.

Loren was aggravated. Adriana was no different than Chloe. "Adriana, what is your problem?" she asked her simply. "Would you like to kiss Eddie?" Eddie was taken aback by this, but he found the fierceness in Loren cute. Adriana rolled her eyes, twirling her blond hair around her finger. She was obviously embarrassed, so she let it go.

After all that Chloe had done last night to Adriana, and after seeing how many people really liked Loren's music, Adriana didn't want to pick a fight with Eddie. Instead she stormed off to find Phil and complain about how rude Loren was to her.

Loren apologized to Eddie, knowing that this wasn't his scene. "Why are you here?" she asked. "Don't you think the paparazzi will find you here?"

"I don't care," he said, smiling. "You said yourself, maybe if Chloe knows we are together, she'll leave us alone. And honestly, Loren Tate, I want the world to know. I'm just concerned for you. I hope you're ready for all of the critique you'll be getting for being my girlfriend!" A part of Eddie knew that she would be fine. It would be good practice for her, especially after last night's concert. She would need to get used to having all eyes on her at some point, and this way, Eddie would be able to keep an eye on her and help her get through it.

"Well then, Mr. Duran," she joked. "Aren't you sweet."

"But I haven't even gotten to the good part," he replied. "Loren, there is a really important question I'd like to ask you."

Loren was stunned. She didn't have the slightest idea what he wanted of her. Surely it couldn't be marriage; they haven't even been together that long. She was still in school and much too young to move in with him. She was already working on his music with him. What else could it be?

Melissa, who was completely absorbed by the Eddie and Loren moment, was scared half to death when she heard movement behind her. Adam comforted her and told her it was nothing, so she stopped worrying.

Adriana, however, noticed Mel turn around, and was completely silent until she turned away. For the first time in a while, she wasn't doing anything to hurt Loren. She hid behind a tree trunk with her phone recording Eddie's conversation with Loren. _This would get back at Chloe_, she thought. _Maybe seeing her ex-fiancé telling some other girl how much he likes her will make her stop faking these meetings with her modeling agents_.

"A little birdie tells me you have a very special senior dance coming up," he began.

"Eddie, I really don't-" Loren started, but Eddie wasn't taking no for an answer.

"Loren, I would be honored if you would let me be your date to your senior prom," he said, flashing his gorgeous smile.

"That's still a good two weeks away!" Loren protested.

"I don't care. This is your senior prom, and I am already taking you away from school to be a big music star like me. The least I can do is let you finish school normally. Unless...you want to take someone else? Is there another rock star I don't know about?" He gave Loren his best puppy dog eyes and begged her to go with him. "Please?"

"But the paparazzi..." she said quietly.

"Loren, you are going to be huge star. There's no more running from it." Eddie pulled her in for another kiss, knowing she loved how they felt. "So what do you say?"

Loren sighed and laughed. "You won't let me say no, will you?" she asked.

"Nope," Eddie told her, laughing as well.

"Alright then, Eddie Duran. I will be your date to my senior prom." She smiled, for once loving the feeling of the rest of the school watching her and only her. Well, and Eddie, of course. She knew the tweets were already going out about Eddie asking her to the dance, but she really didn't mind. All she cared about was how she felt knowing she would have a night to be as close to him as she wanted without anyone else stopping her. No mom, no Chloe... And most importantly, she had something special that no one else did.

"Good," Eddie replied. "Now how about we go somewhere for the night?" he asked. "I feel like a movie night."

* * *

Chloe knew something was up when she saw the video of Eddie asking Loren to the dance. She was enraged, and more enraged that she knew who had posted it. _How had that little high school girl ruined my chance at getting Eddie to dump that valley girl?!_ Adriana had succeeded.

Chloe scrolled through the tabloids, checking to see if this was really true. Stunned, she read the headline of one from Lily's page. _Carter Dumping Modeling Gig?_ Suddenly, she put it all together. That must have been what Jackie had told Lily when she had her over a few days ago. Adriana must have read the article, and knew that she had lied to her about setting up a meeting with a modeling agent.

She let out a growl, slammed the computer shut, and threw herself down on the couch. She had lost. For now, anyway... She would have to do something better to get them to stop dating, and she had just the right thing in mind.


	8. Chapter 8

**I know this is short, but I wanted to give everyone a little bit to read while I work on the upcoming chapters! The next few will have a little bit on Max, Nora, and Leddie, so keep reading!**

**Thank you all for the nice comments on this as well! I absolutely LOVE reading all of them; that's what keeps me writing! ...Can you tell I'm going to minor in writing?! :D**

Eddie had stopped for dinner at a Chinese take out. He went in wearing his sunglasses and baseball cap to avoid the media, and left Loren with his driver for her own protection from their fans. When they left the high school, most of the girls, especially the rich, preppy friends of Adriana's, tried to get Eddie's attention in any way possible. He was afraid all their tricks might make Loren jealous.

Loren had really tuned it all out, though. Eddie had her arm around her shoulder and she was so close to him, that all she could think about was how nice he felt with her. They matched perfectly, and the whole ride to the restaurant all she wanted was to kiss him.

While Eddie was inside, Loren remembered she had plans with Nora for the night. Not wanting to blow her off, she quickly called her and asked her if they could go out tomorrow night instead. Nora was upset at first, but Loren fixed that.

"Mom, I actually want to reschedule because I need your help," she told her.

Nora could tell her daughter was smiling trough her words, so she knew something was up. "What is it, honey?" she asked.

"Well, I need to go prom dress shopping..." she said quietly. "Eddie asked me to go with him. I think it was Mel's doing, though. Adam asked her earlier today." Loren heard her mom laugh; they both knew she was right. That was something Mel would do.

"In that case," Nora finished, "bring Melissa with us."

"Okay, thanks mom," Loren replied happily. Before she hung up, she remembered one more thing. "Hey, mom?" she asked. "If I stay at Eddie's tonight, would that be okay?"

The other end of the line was silent for a minute; Loren knew her mom was processing this slowly.

"What about school in the morning?" Nora asked.

"Well, he could drive me," Loren answered quickly.

Nora sighed, but allowed it. "As long as you promise me you'll be safe."

"Mom," Loren laughed. "Nothing is going to happen, and even if it did, I'm not stupid."

"Alright, but only if you tell me the whole story about this prom deal tomorrow!"

Loren agreed, giggling. Of course she would tell her mom all the details. "Love you, mom," she replied just before hanging up.

Perfectly on time, Eddie returned with two big bags in his hands; he knew Loren could eat, especially after the pastrami day. He remembered that too well; he had gotten to make out with Loren for most of their lunch break. Eddie smiled to himself as he thought about that memory.

"I hope you're hungry," he said, closing the door to the car behind him.

"Oh, I am," Loren replied, smiling back.

The trip to Eddie's apartment was quick; it was just around the corner. When they got there, he and Loren greeted Jeffery and took the elevator up. Loren was relieved there was no Chloe for once.

Eddie opened the door and walked in, only to be met by Max. "Pop, hey," Eddie said, laughing it out uncomfortably. This was not what he had planned for the night. He stepped aside, revealing Loren.

"Hey, Max," she said politely.

Max took notice of their forced politeness and explained why he was there. "Sorry, Nora said you were going to be with her tonight," he said to Loren. Then he looked towards Eddie. "I wanted to talk to you, and I thought you'd be home tonight, so I figured I'd wait."

"Sure, what's it about?" Eddie asked him. There was never any harm in talking to Max.

"Well, I can see you're busy," he said, making his way to the door.

"Oh!" Loren said quickly. "You know what, I wanted to ask Jeffery something anyway. I'll give you guys a few minutes?" she asked before turning to Eddie, who nodded.

"Don't be too long," he told her sweetly and gave her a quick peck on the lips. Eddie watched his dad's expression, and he was relieved to see it was happy for once. He was glad Max approved of his happiness and Loren. "So what's up?"


	9. Chapter 9

"I'm sorry Eddie," Max said, sincerely apologetic. "It's actually something I don't need Loren to hear right now, if you don't mind keeping it from her."

"Sure thing...what is it?" Eddie asked. He knew if it was something Loren really should know about, he would tell her anyway. He hated breaking his dad's promises, but he truly cared for Loren.

"I have to get to MK soon, but I wanted to know your opinion on me having a girlfriend," he said. "I know your mom just happened and that might still not be sitting well with you... I know it still hurts me." Eddie could honestly tell that his dad was being serious. He knew he still missed her. He would never get over Katy, but maybe it was time for him to find someone to be happy with again.

"Well, pop, I think that might be a good idea. You should have some fun again. Mom isn't coming back, you know..." This hurt Eddie when he said it, but it was the truth. "Live the rest of your life happily; she'll understand."

Max smiled and looked at the floor, embarrassed. "Eddie..." he started, knowing his son might not react to the next part so well. "It's Nora."

"What?" Eddie asked, almost with the same tone he gave Chloe when she started up with her tricks. "Pop, that's Loren's _mom_!"

"Well, listen Eddie. I want to talk to her about this too, because I know you love Loren-" Max was cut off by Eddie as soon as he said the word 'love'.

"I don't _love_ her," he said. "I just... I don't know how strongly I feel yet. I like her, a whole lot, but love?"

Max laughed, knowing his son was just running from the inevitable. "I want to ask her if we can keep quiet until after you two are married or whatever it is you're doing."

"Hey!" Eddie said more loudly, completely embarrassed. "Who said anything about marriage yet?!"

"Okay, okay!" Max gave up on telling him the reality. Instead, he began to explain the musical side of things. "I thought that way we could protect your careers as well."

Eddie, calming down a bit, nodded in agreement. "Listen, if you think she'll make you happy, I won't stand in your way. Just don't hurt her, because then you'll hurt Loren, and that would hurt me."

Max thought about the chain in his head for a minute before realizing its' truth. "I know," he said. "I won't let you down."

With that, Eddie thanked him and opened the door for him to leave. "I'll see you later," he said, almost awkwardly, and Eddie didn't know why. He had just seemed so happy.

Eddie went to the doorway to see him down the elevator, but only saw Loren, trying to hide her smile, but clearly failing.

"What' this about marriage, Mr. Duran?" she asked. She was joking, and as soon as Eddie realized that, he pulled her to him and kissed her sweetly. "I heard that whole thing," she laughed. "It was a nice daydream."

"How about that Chinese food?" he asked her, wanting to change the topic, but still happy.

The two enjoyed their dinner, but barely got to a movie. By the time Eddie finished cleaning up the living room, Loren was in the middle of writing, using Eddie's piano. He loved watching her sing. Something about her just made him want her. Her voice was so perfect and beautiful, and her eyes glowed when she was doing anything musical. He remembered that about her from the first time he saw her; he had grabbed her hand at his concert and her world was completely lit up, and he could see that all in her brown eyes.

He sat down quietly next to her as she finished writing down some new lyrics in a book; his book. She was singing them so quietly because she was still in deep thought about them, so Eddie wanted to know what they were. Before he could grab the book, Loren threw herself at it and shook her head with a laugh.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked him playfully. "You wouldn't let me hear yours before it was all written down. That was just one line; it's not done yet, so you'll have to wait!" Loren's even tone was playfully scolding Eddie, and he loved how cute she was when she did it.

"I think you should let me read it now," he laughed, smiling and showing his gorgeous teeth.

"And what makes you think that?" Loren retorted, believing she had won.

Loren's eyes were squinted a little; she was giving off her "fierce" look, trying to scare Eddie, but it didn't do any good. Instead, Eddie pulled her body up against his and brought his lips inches from hers. He let his warm breath escape and touch her lips, and he knew he had won. Only now, it wasn't about the lyrics anymore.

"Eddie," Loren whispered, setting the book down on the piano where it came from.

"Yeah?" he asked, breathing his simple word to her. He didn't want to take his eyes off of her for a minute; he couldn't.

"Kiss me."


	10. Chapter 10

Eddie had never wanted something so much in his life. Like a cannon, he shot full force at Loren, pressing his lips to hers. He loved the taste of her sweet kisses, and how soft her lips were against his. He pushed her over, just as one of their first kisses had begun so many days ago. This one lasted quite awhile, leaving both of them needing air.

When Loren finally broke away, she looked right into Eddie's eyes; they were shining like never before. She wished she could know what was going on inside that pretty head of his, but she knew that would never happen.

Eddie was breathing heavily but still he ran his hands through Loren's now longer hair. He had to admit, it was much more fun to play with than before. Loren wanted to smile as she felt his fingers move from her hair to her arms. She watched him slowly caress her skin, and when his fingers moved, they left a trail of warmth behind, making her shiver in excitement.

When Loren looked back up and met Eddie's gaze, she knew he would never hurt her. His soft touch said it all; he liked her for her, not for her body or her voice, or anything material like that. These were all special things she possessed, but Eddie liked the real her. He liked the person that helped him when he was upset and tweeted him lyrics when she was inspired and had normal daily interactions with real people. He liked her because she treated him like one of those people every day. And because of this, he would always protect her.

Eddie knew Loren must have been analyzing him, because he let her stare in silence. He searched her eyes as she did his, and saw her thoughts clicking as she figured out that she had known these things all along and that is why she let it slip that she loved him.

Every part of Loren screamed to tell Eddie that she loved him, here and now. She didn't care if he didn't feel the same way. She just wanted the weight off her shoulders. But another part of her told her how stupid this was, and that if and when he was ready, Eddie would tell her that he loved her as well.

Instead, Loren let something else completely stupid escape her mouth. "Don't stop," she whispered.

Eddie's eyes darkened a little. Loren wasn't sure why, but Edie tried to explain the best he could. "Loren," he began, sounding almost saddened. "I don't want to pressure you, I told you before."

"Eddie, please," she begged.

_That's it,_ he thought to himself before diving back at her lips. He kissed her once more, but forced himself to pull away. As much as he wanted to let his devious side win, he knew he would never forgive himself if he let her do something stupid while she wasn't thinking straight.

"Loren," he said again, sounding the same as before. "Stop, okay?"

Loren, frustrated, let out a hefty sigh. "Eddie, I promise, I want this," she told him, looking him straight in the eyes.

With that, he scooped her up and lifted her into the air. Loren wrapped her legs around Eddie's waist and allowed him to carry her across the room and into the bedroom.

When morning arrived, Loren awoke to a mess of sheets and clothes. At first, she couldn't focus on what had happened. She sat up, keeping the sheets covering her chest, but soon realized how much her lower body ached. Peeking under the covers, she came to the conclusion, that yes, she was naked, and yes, she was in Eddie Duran's bed. But where _was_ Eddie?

The previous night came back to her in pieces. She was still exhausted, but she began to remember easily. Eddie had kissed her on the piano bench, and she had asked him to kiss her. Well, more like ordered it out of him. Loren smiled to herself and bunched up her hair in one hand as she let out a happy sigh.

Everything was perfect. Close to everything, anyway. "Eddie?" she called, standing up and finding her undergarments. "Are you still home?" She grimaced as she tried to put her clothes back on; everyone had said their first time would hurt, but she didn't expect to still be feeling the remains of it in the morning. She kind of liked it, though; it was a reminder that everything was real and she wasn't dreaming. After all, this had been just a dream of hers a few months ago.

"Good morning, miss Tate."

Loren heard Eddie's voice coming from the doorway. She spun around and quickly tried to cover herself, remembering she was only in her underwear.

"What's wrong?" he asked, chuckling to himself. He stood in only his boxers, making Loren stare in awe.

_Did I really just have that all to myself last night?_ she thought to herself.The memories of Eddie...without the boxers...came pouring back, making her face flash red with embarrassment.

"Loren, we had sex last night... I've seen you naked," Eddie continued, trying to get an answer out of her.

"Oh, right." Loren blushed, embarrassed. "I forgot..." With that, she let her body unravel and she stood straight again. "I um...can't find my shirt..." she mumbled, still trying not to drool over the sight of Eddie Duran shirtless. She had gotten over the fact that she was dating him and now loved him for the guy that he was, but right now, all she saw was the rock star in him.

"Would you like me to drive you back to your house to pick up some new clothes?" he asked her, breaking her thoughts.

"Yeah, sure..._wait_! What time is it?!" Loren began to panic. She looked at the clock on the bedside table and realized she was missing first period. "Oh no, I'm late for school!"

Eddie laughed and almost asked her if she wanted to spend the day playing hooky with him, but he remembered how seriously she took her classes. "Alright, I'll drive you," he told her. However, he had a trick of his own up his sleeve. "But only on one condition, and no arguments; you're wearing one of my shirts for the day!"


	11. Chapter 11

Loren didn't want to wear Eddie's clothes around the whole day. She was embarrassed, and she knew what everyone would think when she showed up to her classes like that, especially late!

"You know, they'll post it everywhere before I even have time to explain!" she complained from the passenger side seat of his car. Eddie wanted to be more personal with this ride, so he drove her himself.

Eddie laughed, shaking his head. He wore his sunglasses today, just so he could get to Jake's office without paparazzi following him from Loren's school. "Explain what?" he asked innocently. "Loren, we were together last night." His voice suddenly changed, and Loren could tell he was thinking too much into everything. "Loren, you were ready, weren't you? You told me not to stop...several times, actually," he pointed out.

"No, of course I was ready," Loren answered, doing her best to show him a genuine smile back. "Eddie, I loved last night. I would love it more if I wasn't still feeling it, but that's life," she finished. Loren never bought into the TV shows and movies; not everyone got that perfect and flawless experience, and she was okay with that. Being realistic, she was perfectly content with the way everything did play out.

Eddie, on the other hand, became even more bothered by what Loren had just said. "I didn't hurt you, did I?" he asked.

"No!" she replied as soon as the words left his mouth. "That's not what I meant! It's just... Well, not every girl goes through that and is completely painless. Eddie, you were a perfect gentleman."

Eddie smiled, loving the words that she just spoke. "Why thank you, miss Tate." He annunciated her last name like always, making her blush.

As they finished their conversation, Eddie pulled his car up to the school. Loren hated the fact that she had to leave, but she was going to miss all of first period if she didn't get in there.

Before she went to get out of the car, Eddie pulled her in close to him from the driver's seat. She smiled and moved her eyes from his eyes to his lips, waiting for her goodbye kiss.

"Loren," he whispered.

"Yeah?"

"Have a good day."

Loren thought for sure that he would tell her he loved her, especially after last night. However, what followed was just as sweet. Eddie leaned in and closed the space between them as he gave her a kiss goodbye. He meant it as a quick kiss, but Loren wouldn't let him end it that quickly. She held onto it for a few seconds longer before letting him pull away.

"Thanks," Loren told him, "for everything last night and today."

Eddie let her go without saying anything else to make her want to stay. He knew she needed to be in class. Loren was already missing him terribly when she walked into first period, right in the middle of her teacher's lecture. For once, though, she wasn't even embarrassed to be the center of attention. That must have come from all the experience she had been getting because of her music and because of how much she was falling for Eddie.

Loren sat down next to Mel, smiling to herself. She wasn't paying a single bit of attention; all of her thoughts were replaying last night.

Melissa cleared her throat quietly, as not to disturb their classmates. The perks of sitting in the back meant you could talk if you really needed some girl time. "There's not even ten minutes left of this class, Tate. Where have you been?!"

Loren looked over at Mel, slightly upset that she had to stop her daydreaming. "I overslept," she answered, trying to be herself.

"What in the world are you wearing?" Mel asked her instantly, ignoring her previous answer. "You look like you looted Phil's closet..."

"Oh, this..." Loren began shyly. "We can talk after class, okay?" she asked, trying to avoid this conversation as long as possible. She loved telling Mel everything, but she hadn't even had time for it all to sink in for her yet.

Loren looked around the room and counted the minutes as they ticked past. She wanted to call Eddie; she didn't want to seem clingy, but she didn't want to let him go just yet either. Looking towards the board in the front of the room, she noticed a couple of the other girls in the class eyeing her up. Then, when they realized she was looking, they would revert back to playing on their phones under the desks.

Then, as soon as the bell rang, Loren knew exactly what was happening. One of them, a blond groupie of Adriana's that has always wanted Loren to introduce her to Eddie, pushed herself out of her seat and came right for Loren.

"That's Eddie's shirt! He wore it on his tour; it's in the pictures from Florida last year!"

This left Mel breathless, giving her traditional "ooh, someone has something to tell me!" look. Quickly, she took Loren's arm and guided her out of the room and away from Eddie's fan girls. They ended up in the bathroom, where she expected Loren to dish it all out. "Loren, Loren, Loren," she scolded jokingly. "Do you have something to tell me?"


	12. Chapter 12

"Mel, calm down!" Loren laughed, trying to keep Melissa from pushing her over with all of her excitement.

"Lo, what happened?!"

"Nothing...I just stayed at Eddie's last night," Loren lied.

Mel knew something was up with her story, so she kept her questioning up. "Did he say he _loves_ you?" she asked, using her best baby voice possible.

"Kind of..." Loren answered, trailing off with embarrassment.

"What!?" Melissa was astounded. "And you didn't tell me yet because?!"

"Well, he didn't really say it," Loren told her. "He kind of...did it." Loren watched Melissa's jaw drop. She started giggling and jumping up and down, which made her want to do the same. This _was_ her best friend, after all, so it was now or never. "Okay, okay!" she yelled excitedly. "I slept with Eddie!"

Melissa hugged her as tight as possible, astonished that this was actually happening. "Lo, this is _huge_ news! How was it?! What happened?! _I need details!_"

"Well it just kind of happened; I just decided I didn't want to stop him. It started as a kiss, and then I just didn't want to protest anymore." Loren told her story, getting more and more excited as she went.

"Uh huh," Mel encouraged. "And how gorgeous is the rest of him?"

"Mel!" Loren couldn't believe she had asked such a question, but then she remembered that she _was_ dating a rock star. "Actually, he's pretty amazing," she admitted. "Oh, it was so great! He had his hands everywhere, and we were so close..." Loren trailed off, realizing how awkward the words sounded coming from her mouth.

Mel, on the other hand, had no problem finishing for her. "And you didn't care about his sweat or his heavy breathing or the groans he made in your ear, right?"

Loren's jaw dropped and she let out a laugh of surprise. "Mel!"

"Just sayin'..."

Before Melissa could finish, there was a loud noise as the bathroom door was thrown open. Mel groaned unhappily and Loren's face fell when she realized that the same blond from class must have just over heard the entire conversation. What made it worse was the feeling of her phone going off in her pocket.

"So I have this right? You slept with _the_ Eddie Duran?!" Adriana's toy asked, jumping up and down. "You two are so close so can't you please introduce me?! Is he coming here again after school?!"

Loren felt like crying. The incoming text message was from Eddie. After ignoring the blond and running from the bathroom and to her locker, she buried her face in the metal box. She opened the text and saw a link, which led her to a gossip site. At the top, it read: _Tate Reported to Have Sexual Relations with Duran._ A picture of Loren talking to Mel in the bathroom wearing Eddie's shirt was below, with a full description of the fact that it was, indeed, Eddie's shirt.

At once, Loren knew it had to be Adriana's minions that reported this. And now, Eddie seemed to even be upset with her for this. If she had just convinced him that wearing his shirt was a bad idea, then none of this would have happened.

Frustrated, she began to tear down the pictures of Eddie she had lining the back of her locker door. It was silly to have them there anyway; if she was dating him, why would she be this obsessed? She left a few up as her anger died down, and instead, she slammed the locker shut and wanted to leave early. Tears were filling her eyes, but she was a Tate, and Tate's don't cry, especially not over a situation as blown up as this.

She let out a controlled breath to calm herself down, and when she looked up from the floor, she came face to face with Eddie.

"What are you doing here?!" she asked him, completely shocked.

Eddie was in disguise, knowing the paparazzi was just waiting for Loren to leave the school. He pulled her in close for a hug, and whispered into her ear. "I left Jake's the moment I saw those articles. I was worried; you haven't had this much drama with the paparazzi yet, and I know you said you needed to be in class, but you look like you need to get some air. Come on, let's get you out of here."

He took her hand and lead her down the hall and past the paparazzi at the front door. He held her in close as he walked through them and to the car he had waiting for him outside. His driver took off instantly, knowing they would want to get away from there as soon as possible.

Loren's phone was buzzing again, and she was sure it had to be her mom. They hadn't talked about her night with Eddie or any of this, and she felt terrible for having her find out this way. She wasn't ready to face her; she would call her later when she had everything under control.

Eddie held Lorne close to him in the car. She felt like crying again, but for a completely different reason this time. He felt her breath slowly to control herself and stroked her hair with his hand.

"Hey," he said softly. "Everything will be fine."

"You're not mad at me?" she asked, almost afraid of hearing his answer.

"Of course not!" he said, stunned that she had even asked him such a silly thing. "Loren, I-"

"But everyone knows and you didn't want that!" Loren had cut him off, more worried about how he viewed her after that meltdown. "I thought I'd lost you..."

"Loren," he whispered sweetly. "Those guys with the cameras are just out to get their own money. They'll always be reporting us and every other celebrity; there's no escaping that." He kissed her forehead, letting her know he wasn't going anywhere. "But can you answer me one thing?" he asked.

"Sure..."

"Why did you tear down all of those hot pictures of me?" Eddie had asked her this so sincerely that Loren couldn't tell if she should laugh or not. She sat up and looked directly into his eyes, trying to figure out the answer. He finally let out a grin and she rolled her eyes and laid her head back on his shoulder. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding," he told her.

"I don't have any pictures...of us," she answered him honestly. "It seems silly for me to be obsessing like a fan over my...well, you."

"Your what?" Eddie asked her, curious. "Are you afraid to call me your boyfriend?"

"Well, are you?" she asked him in return.

"Well, you're my girlfriend, so I guess that makes me your boyfriend."

With that, Loren smiled, knowing not everything was bad. Then she remembered how rude she had been cutting Eddie off. "I'm so sorry, Eddie, I forgot you were trying to say something."

"I was?" he asked, forgetting.

"Yeah, you said my name, and then I stopped you..."

Eddie was hoping she wouldn't remember this; what he said was out of his heart, but he wasn't sure now was the time. "I was just saying, Loren, I'm...here for you."


	13. Chapter 13

Eddie took Loren out for lunch before taking her back to her house instead of his, where he knew the paparazzi would be waiting. They managed to escape the drama while they ate, and no one seemed to be around Loren's home. Nora was still at work when they arrived, giving Loren time to cool down. She still didn't feel like calling her mom back; knowing Nora and how she was acting lately, she would be disappointed in Loren.

Instead, Loren walked in and flopped down on the couch, wanting to curl up and fall asleep. However, part of her knew she should be up and active; it was the only way to forget about everything. She pulled out her phone and sent Mel a text, letting her know she should drop by after school so they could go dress shopping with Nora.

Then she stood, pacing in front of the couch. After a couple of times, she fell into Eddie's arms. He was leaning against the wall by the door, waiting for her to calm down and take everything in.

"Loren?" he asked her.

Loren looked up, responding to his question. He was watching her, his eyes filled with warmth. She loved how pretty they were; every other girl in the world loved blue eyes, but Eddie's sweet brown eyes were her favorite thing in the world.

"I need to tell you something," he finished. He felt her stir in his arms, and knew she was starting to panic.

"What is it?" she asked, hoping nothing else had really happened. She was ready for the day to be over, not for it to get longer and more dramatic.

He paused, leading her on. He knew she would work herself up, though, so he didn't wait long to tell her. "Jake and Kelly released the video for _Something In The Air_ earlier today. They wanted to wait, but they just couldn't hold it anymore; the press was getting to them."

"What?!" Loren pushed herself back from him and ran to her computer, immediately going to Eddie's website and loading the video.

She watched herself more than she watched Eddie. Halfway through it, she felt his arms wrap around her waist from behind. He chuckled to himself, loving how cute she was when she was stressed over something so little.

"Loren, you were perfect," he told her, making sure she knew no one hated the video so far.

"You really think so?" she asked, doubting herself. Her voice showed that; she was never okay until Eddie said everything was good. Even with her confidence boost due to Eddie, she hated when the public commented on her every move.

"Yes, you look beautiful in the whole thing," he told her sincerely.

"Aw." Loren turned towards him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Then, her phone rang; this made her sigh in disappointment. The perks of a rock star life...she would never have alone time when she really wanted it. "Kelly, what's up?" she answered.

"Loren, have you seen it?" Kelly asked her on the other end of the line. "It's a huge hit; you did such a great job! You should be proud!"

"Eddie just told me," she answered, feeling better now that Kelly was catching her up on the reviews of the public.

"Oh, then I guess I should give you guys some alone time?" she asked, hinting at the fact that she saw the article as well.

"Um, thanks..." Loren answered, not wanting to talk about it anymore.

With that, Loren hung up. She felt better now, which made Eddie smile. He loved it when she was happy; he never understood why she doubted herself so often.

"Great, even Kelly knows now," Loren said, sighing in frustration.

"Hey," Eddie said, stepping up to her and lifting her chin with his right hand. He put his other around her waist and left it resting in the small of her back. "Two good things acme of this, you know," he pointed out. "She may know, but so does Jake now," he informed her.

"What?!" These new installments to everything that had happened today were really starting to get old to Loren.

"Trust me, he wasn't happy," he admitted. "But I told him it's none of his business, and he agreed to stay out of it as long as I keep writing."

"And what's the second thing?" Loren asked him, remembering he said there two things.

"Well, they're not lying," he said slyly, knowing it would make Loren blush. "You and I did-"

"Shhh," Loren shushed him, embarrassed to talk about it.

Instead, Eddie stepped forward and kissed her gently. He left his lips on hers, giving her the upper hand. She replied with another little kiss, which turned into another, and another. Soon, Eddie had pushed the two onto Loren's bed and they were flung into a full blown make out session.

Before she could stop herself, Loren found her hands reaching for the bottom of Eddie's shirt. She began pulling it up and over his head, loving the sight she had in front of her once he was shirtless. He laughed into their kiss, pulling away and looking at Loren.

"Again?" he asked her playfully. "I didn't think you would want to so soon."

Before Loren could answer, she heard a call from the living room, followed by a door being closed. Her hopes dropped and she tried to rush Eddie to put his shirt back on. She stood, frantically fixing her hair in the mirror, but there was no use. In her doorway stood her best friend, completely star struck by Eddie's bare chest.

"Whoa," she said, trying to break her stare.


	14. Chapter 14

"You guys are like rabbits!" Melissa commented, beginning to laugh hysterically at what she just walked in on.

"Mel!" Loren was completely embarrassed, even talking to her best friend. Her face was pale and she felt sick; what else could go wrong today?!

"Relax, Lo," Melissa replied.

Eddie took this as his cue to leave, knowing the girls would be heading out soon anyway. He pulled his shirt back on and made his way off the bed and over to Loren. He came inches from her face and whispered goodbye to her. He gave her a goodbye kiss, and told her he would talk to her later.

"I'd love to come along, but I don't want to be seeing the dress before prom," he told her jokingly. "Bye, Loren Tate."

Loren watched him let himself out, and sighed in amazement at how perfect he was. She had to stop herself before she blurted out I love you again; she wouldn't want to mess all of this up. Everything was better once she was with Eddie.

However, only a few minutes after he had gone, things turned upside down again. Melissa was finally starting to let go of what she had just witnessed when the two girls heard the front door open again. Only this time, Loren didn't have to wait to see who it was.

"Loren Tate!" her mother called from the kitchen. "I would really love to speak with you. _Now!"_

Loren knew she was in for a long conversation, and Melissa told her she would gladly leave out the fact that she had just walked in on what looked like the beginning of round two for the couple. The two made their way to the living room and kitchen area, knowing an explosion was about to happen.

Loren came in, acting excessively cheery, and tried to give her mom a big hug. "Hey, mom!" she said happily.

Nora didn't buy it, though. "Loren, what happened to waiting?!" She had jumped right in to the conversation Loren didn't want to have. When she spotted Melissa, she awkwardly added a hi to her before focusing on Loren again.

"Mom, trust me, okay? He was perfect, everything was good, and _I am happy_." She looked at her mom, trying to show her how much it would mean to her if they didn't have to have this conversation right that very minute. "Can we just talk about this later? Please?" She gave Nora her best puppy dog eyes, and she knew that she had won.

"Fine," she agreed, but noting to be sure to bring it back up later on that night. "But just tell me one thing," she ordered. "Were you safe?"

"Mom!" Loren felt her face grow hot. She knew she was turning red, so she ended it quickly. "Yes. Now can we go?"

Nora sighed, but agreed. She couldn't wait to see her daughter in a prom dress. The idea consumed her, and she quickly grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge before leading the girls out to the car.

* * *

The weeks leading up to prom went slowly. They were boring, with not as much drama as before. The tabloids has slowed down with the headlines about Loren and Eddie, and so did their own lives. Eddie was busier than ever with his new music. He was recording soon, and he needed to get some songs written. Loren had met with Kelly nearly every day to arrange meetings with vocalists, journalists and interviewers, stylists, and labels.

Eddie had taken Loren out to dinner a few nights, and they even spent one of those nights at the Hollywood sign, where they watched the stars, talked about anything but work, and kissed. Eddie refused to tell Loren any details of his prom plans; he wanted to surprise her and give her the night she really deserved, especially after having neglected her for two weeks due to work. Their sex life wasn't even active; after the paparazzi made things complicated, the two found themselves having less and less time to be alone.

Things with Nora and Don had ended; Don had ordered too much from Nora, and once she found out about Ellie, she had dumped him on the spot. She wasn't mad at Ellie; it was Don's fault for lying to her the whole time they were dating. Ellie was his toy before Nora was, and she felt sorry for her. Instead, Max had sent her flowers one night, and she agreed to meet him at MK the next. The two had developed a friendship that Max and Nora had been missing since their significant others had left them.

Melissa's real mom, Beth, refused to talk to her. She was hurt, but Lisa had helped her through, and Melissa knew that she and Gus were her real parents; they were people who gave Mel her whole life, and if Beth didn't want anything to do with her, so be it. The only upside was that Phil was really her cousin.

Adriana wouldn't be attending prom; she was busy having Phil's child. He didn't approve, but after all the drama that had occurred when people found out Adriana was pregnant, no one really cared about him being the dad.

The night of prom came quickly, and before Loren knew it, the whole thing had blown up. The paparazzi had word that Eddie would be accompanying Loren to her dance and they were already reported to be staked out front of the venue. Her senior formal was becoming more and more like a red carpet for all of the students.

Kelly had arranged a stylist to come in to do Loren's hair and makeup; she wanted her to look perfect, especially with the press on her the whole night.

Before she knew it, Loren was waiting for Eddie to pick her up at MK with her mom and Max. She was nervous; she was dressed in a mermaid fit gown. It was olive green, a color that accented her hair and eyes perfectly, and had a sweetheart neckline that was trimmed with sequins. It was elegant and class, while still looking fun and youthful. She just hoped Eddie would like it.

"Are you ready, sweetie?" Nora asked her. She knew Loren was nervous; even after performing with Eddie and meeting all of the labels, she was still more afraid of this.

"Loren, you look amazing," Max told her, knowing she needed some support to work off of until Eddie arrived.

Before Loren could respond, Eddie walked in slowly, taking in every part of what he saw.


	15. Chapter 15

Eddie was dressed in a tux, matching the colors Loren told him she was wearing. He stopped and smiled as soon as he saw Loren in her dress. She looked beautiful and breathtaking.

"Loren, you look absolutely stunning," he told her sweetly, making sure to give her a long kiss hello. Loren thought the same of him, and smiled into the kiss. All of a sudden, her nerves were gone; once again, Eddie had made everything okay.

"Thanks," she replied shyly when they broke apart. Her mom had cleared her throat, letting them know she was still in the room.

"Well, are you ready, miss Tate?" Eddie asked her, stepping up on his toes quickly like he always did when he used her full name.

She nodded, looking like a deer in headlights. She was so nervous, but as long as she had Eddie, everything would be okay.

When they stepped outside, they were immediately met with flashing cameras and screaming fans who were more interested in Eddie than Loren. Eddie had coached Loren, though, and she held her head high, her arm locked with his, all the way to the limo he had waiting for them at the entrance. She felt like a princess; the whole day had felt like a dream.

The two were met with similar reactions when they arrived at the venue. This time, however, there were more people Loren knew around her, giving her some ground to stand on.

As the two made their way inside, all eyes turned to them. It was like a wedding; everyone was looking at Loren and Eddie. They made their way to the table that Melissa and Adam had already saved for their group and sat, trying to ignore the whispers and stares from every other teenage girl around.

Eddie knew this would bother Loren, so before saying anything else, he leaned over and kissed her. He made it clear that it was a real kiss, and not just a peck. When they parted, he glanced around the room, making sure everyone had seen.

"Alright, what do we have to eat," he asked, laughing, when he turned back to the group around the table.

"Lo, you look _beautiful_," Melissa said as soon as Loren had her attention on her instead of Eddie.

"You do too, Mel!" she replied, loving Melissa's ball gown. She knew her friend would go over the top, but it suited her well.

Adam sat between Mel and Eddie awkwardly. Even though it had been well over a month, he was still amazed that Eddie Duran was in his friend group.

Dinner was served, and while Mel and Loren gossiped, Eddie watched how happy Loren looked. He was relieved that the drama with the paparazzi had finally gone from bad to good; she was a star, but she wouldn't admit it until they did as well.

Loren caught Eddie's eye as the caterers cleared the tables and smiled. She couldn't believe how handsome he was, or the fact that Eddie Duran had actually taken her to her dance.

"Loren, you are the most beautiful person here you know," he said seriously. He was being extra adorable tonight, and Loren loved that. "Will you, miss Loren Tate, be as kind to dance with me?" he asked her as the music started to make its way from the DJ's speakers.

Loren, blushing, let him lead her onto the dance floor. Cameras flashed and people stared, like they had been all night. Eddie knew the girls were making Loren jealous, but all he wanted was her. She looked like a goddess; her hair and makeup were perfect, and her dress accented her body in all the right ways.

Loren loved how it felt when Eddie held her. She had never been once to dance well, but with his lead, everything was amazing.

Melissa and Adam joined, and other people started to follow in as well.

After a song or two, Loren realized how annoyed the other girls at the dance were. Half of them sat at their tables drooling over Eddie while their dates looked bored out of their mind. The other half tried to have fun dancing around the couple, but mostly just so they could "accidentally" bump into Eddie. Loren's cheeks turned bright red as she realized that all of these people and all of the entire world were seeing Eddie grind on her like he did in his videos.

Loren took this all in, but the way his hips felt against her reminded her of the night of their first time together and how well they fit together. Eddie's breath was in her ear just as it was that night, and she loved how it gave her a tingly feeling. She knew he was already sweating, but she loved it; he was a rock star, and that's how he lived every one of his concerts out. That is what made her love how sexy he was; he was all hers, even while he is on stage, and she adored that.

She turned, kissing him quickly, and laughed. Eddie smiled and knew she was having a good time. He wanted to make it better, but first he had to take a quick break.

"Babe, I'm going to the bathroom real quick, okay?" he asked.

Loren nodded, but as soon as he left, she felt lonely and sat at their table. Melissa, noticing, pulled Adam aside and sat with him.

"Lo, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing, I just miss him," she said, laughing at how stupid that sounded. He hadn't even been gone five minutes!

They were interrupted then by the screaming of many teenage girls and the beginning of a song Loren knew well. It was the same song she had heard Eddie write at his dad's bungalow so long ago. She had heard him rehearse it over and over for his new album many times before.

_That jerk!_ Loren thought to herself. She was mad, but yet she knew somehow he got sucked into this. She should've known brining Eddie Duran to her prom would result in the school asking him to play a mini concert.

She smiled to herself and listened to the words. Melissa watched her throughout the song, knowing as well as Loren did that no one else had ever heard this one before.

Loren watched as Eddie made his way off the DJ stage and all the girls tried to grab at him and hug him, just like they did at his concerts. She knew how they felt; she was in their place just a short while ago.

As he finished the lyrics of the verse, his eyes fell on Loren. Her hear raced; she loved it when he sang to her. And as if everything was a dream, just like she had felt before, he took her hand and pulled her up to dance with him in the middle of the dance floor. Her classmates were crowded around them, just as they would be at any other concert. Only, instead of just Eddie in the spotlight, it was Loren too.

Eddie's voice was so smooth that Loren felt herself shiver. She loved how he sounded; she had loved his voice since before they had met.

He pulled her in close as he sang the last few words, and then dipped her for a long kiss. Lorne knew there was no avoiding the spotlight when he pulled her back up. Phones were recording the whole scene; the seniors were cheering, asking him to play another. Instead, he ignored them and continued to stare right into Loren's eyes. He brought the mic back to his mouth, but this time he didn't sing.

"Loren Tate," he said softly. "I love you."


	16. Chapter 16

Loren felt like the room was spinning; she focused on Eddie's shining brown eyes for leverage. Just like when Eddie announced she had won, she felt consciousness slipping from her. She fought it, knowing her classmates would make fun of her if she passed out again, but it was no good. The last thing she heard before she blacked out was Melissa's high pitched yell of "_Finally!_"

Eddie caught Loren as she began to slip out of his hands. He laughed and picked her up off her feet and to the table where Mel and Adam still sat. One of the kids on the dance floor dove to get the microphone that Eddie had used; she would savor that forever.

As the DJ began to play more music after thanking Eddie for playing the school a song, Melissa and Adam helped Eddie lay Loren down as best as they could. Eddie sat in his chair, and Adam laid Loren's head on his chest. Then, they propped her legs up on her chair.

Eddie stroked her hair and smiled as he watched her; it was almost like she was sleeping. He knew she would yell at him the moment she came to, but he hoped she might be a bit more forgiving of him.

"Eddie, I can't believe you just did that," Adam commented, amused but worried at the same time.

"Oh hush," Mel quieted him. "Loren will think it was romantic, just like I do." Then she squealed and clapped her hands together in excitement. "My best friend is in love with a rock star! And he loves her back!" Then, just like that, her expression changed.

Eddie followed her gaze to the entrance way of the room and noticed a short, blond girl. Thinking nothing of it, he started to turn and ask Mel what was wrong. Then he noticed who was behind her; the source of all evil herself, Chloe Carter.

"What is she doing here?" he asked, frustrated and upset. He didn't move; he wanted Loren to be comfortable.

"I don't know," Mel answered. "We all thought Adriana wasn't coming. And she really had the nerve to bring Chloe?" The school knew those two were friends; Adriana was so self centered, she would rub the fact that Chloe Carter knew her in anyone's face. It had upset Loren and Mel at first, but Loren knew Eddie would have her back, so it didn't matter.

The group was snapped out of their thoughts when Loren began to stir. She reached up and put her hand on Eddie's cheek, letting him know she was awake.

"Hey there," he laughed, smiling his gorgeous smile at her.

"Hey," she said and smiled back. Once she remembered what had happened, though, she shot up like a bullet and covered her face with her hands. "Oh, I am so embarrassed!" she told him, peeking through her fingers.

"Lo, no one blames you," Melissa told her, just stating the obvious. Eddie Duran had told her he loved her; who _wouldn't_ faint?

"But Eddie just told me he loves me and I-_wait_!" Loren caught herself mid sentence as it all came flowing back to her. Eddie _had_ said 'I love you' to her.

"Loren," he called, almost as if he was calling his puppy.

Loren dropped her hands slowly and looked back, forcing an embarrassed smile. Eddie let out a chuckle and took a deep breath while taking her hands in his. Loren finally sat back down in her chair, facing him, but she was still killing herself for ruining such a perfect moment.

"Eddie, I'm so sorry!" she apologized, feeling terrible for ruining everything he had planned. She knew that was all a trick to let him play her that song. And then as soon as he let everyone know how he really felt about her, she left him. Just like that.

"Loren," he hushed her, putting a finger on her lips. Then, without another word, Eddie pulled her to him and pressed his lips against hers. He felt her release all of her tension once she knew he was not mad at her. He pulled away, but kept her close. "You're not going to faint on me again, are you?" he asked her jokingly. When she shook her head, he continued. "Good. Loren, I love you, babe."

Loren felt tears coming to her eyes. She smiled, this time not forcing one bit of it, and brought her hand back to his cheek. "Eddie, I love you too," she told him.

Everything was the way it was supposed to be; Eddie loved her, and she could forget the whole slip up from their phone call awhile back. Eddie laughed, the happiest he had been in a while, and watched her eyes light up.

"You know, miss Tate," he told her. "Now the whole world knows, and I love it."

Eddie kissed her again, this time with more passion than any other kiss that night. Loren loved it. Eddie Duran, the rock star was hers. But more importantly, Eddie Duran, the guy she loved, was hers. The only thing that could ruin that moment was Chloe. Unfortunately, she just so happened to be there.

Loren had missed their arrival, but as soon as she heard that dreaded voice, she groaned.

"Eddie, what in the world are you doing?" Chloe asked him, standing right next to his seat. Adriana stood behind her, her little baby bump slightly showing. She looked so out of place; she stood awkwardly, and it was clear to everyone else at the table that Chloe had drug her here as a tool in her little game.

"Why are you even here, Chloe?" Eddie retorted, rolling his eyes at her.


	17. Chapter 17

Adriana stood awkwardly behind Chloe. Before any more was said, she intervened. "Look, I'm going to go, I really don't feel so good," she told Chloe, who was not at all happy.

"Fine, desert me," she sneered, watching Adriana run from the room. "You were my way here, you know." Then she turned back to Eddie and Loren. "You really think he loves you, little girl?" she asked, acting like she was talking to a baby.

"You know what, Chloe," Loren answered, standing up and coming close to Chloe. "You are nothing right now. Nothing to me, nothing to Eddie, and nothing to even the press."

Chloe stood, her jaw dropped to the floor. She was livid; she couldn't believe that Loren had just said that to her.

By now, more people had realized that Chloe Carter was also present at their prom. She wore a short, skin tight black strapless dress; she clearly wanted to show off what she had.

"Eddie, let's just go," Loren told him, knowing that she didn't want to be the one responsible for ruining everyone else's dance.

"No, babe, let's stay. In fact, let's dance," he replied, never taking his eyes off of Chloe.

Mel slapped his back, knowing Loren was getting fed up with his fascination of Chloe. He pressed his lips together and gave out a sigh, leading Loren away from Chloe and her drama. Leading her on to the dance floor, he pulled her close as a slow song started.

"Pretend she's not here, babe," he whispered softly. "Just remember, I love you, not her."

Loren nodded slowly, not wanting to say anything else about Chloe.

Back at the table, Mel folded her arms and stood in between Chloe and where Eddie and Loren had just gone off to. She knew Chloe was about to get fed up, but hopefully she would just leave, since Adriana didn't even want to be there.

"Get!" Melissa yelled at her, almost as if she was a cat. "Leave them alone, Chloe, or I swear to God, I will make sure your life is miserable. You and Adriana are disgusting. Stick with her, not Eddie; you're both hopeless."

"Fine, but mark my words...the valley girl will pay. And soon." With that, Chloe snarled at Mel, but turned and stomped away and out of the dance venue to find Adriana.

Melissa heaved a sigh of relief and let Adam lead her to dance next to Eddie and Loren. She let Eddie know Chloe had left, which also comforted Loren.

Finally, Loren let out a big breath and laid her head on Eddie's shoulder. "I love you, Eddie," she whispered, finally feeling at ease. Eddie loved hearing this; he was glad he finally admitted his feelings for her.

The two finished their dance quietly, Loren resting her head on Eddie's shoulder the whole time. He kept his arms tightly around her, letting her know he wasn't going anywhere, especially after what had just happened with Chloe showing up.

When the song ended, the four of them made their way back to their table so Loren could check her phone to make sure he mom wasn't blowing it up with questions. She knew things were probably going viral already; pictures and videos of the two dancing, Chloe showing up, and most importantly, Loren passing out.

Loren decided to call her mom to check in and make sure she knew she was okay. It rung a few times, before a voice answered that took Loren by surprise.

"Mom?" Loren asked, double checking that she wasn't hearing things.

"Loren, hi," the voice answered. It sounded like the person on the other line was acting like she was more important than her, which all made sense when she finally said who it was. "It's Adriana."

"Oh, hi...Adriana..." Loren answered, still wondering why she wasn't talking to her mom on her own phone. "Um, why are you answering Nora's phone?"

"Oh, she asked me to. Someone broke into my dad's clinic again and took some more pills. That's why I had to leave that stupid dance so soon. They took some stuff of your moms though, too. Some pictures or something. Anyway, she wanted you to come here, but she didn't want to take you away from your night." Adriana sounded convincing, but being nice really wasn't her thing.

Loren took it all in, and Eddie, who was overhearing the whole phone call, nodded, as if telling her they should go. "Okay, well tell her I'll be there soon," she answered.

Loren hung up and put the phone back into her handbag. Eddie looked at his for the time and realized how late it actually was.

"There's only a half hour of this left, anyway, Loren Tate," he said flirtatiously. "Want me to call the limo to drive you there?"

Loren nodded and kissed him sweetly. "Thank you, Mr. Duran, for this amazing night." She laughed as she watched him stand tall and proud. She knew he was trying to make her giggle, but it worked anyway.

* * *

It was getting late, and Nora knew Loren would be home soon.

"Well, I better get going," she told Max Duran as she stood from the bar at MK and gathered her things.

Nora wanted to send Loren a text telling her she would wait up to her all about the night, but realized she couldn't find her phone. She sifted through her back, double checking to make sure she didn't forget that she had put it in there, but it wasn't there.

"Max, have you seen my cell?" she asked him while zipping her bag back up.

"No," he said, checking the other side of the bar. "If it turns up, I'll let you know," he added quickly.

"Well, thank you," Nora answered, getting ready to walk out to her car. "And thank you for keeping me company tonight. My nerves are all over the place with Loren being so busy lately! She's so grown up..."

Max smiled and played with his pockets sheepishly. "Don't worry, I enjoyed it."

Nora smiled and was going to say goodbye, but before she could, Max took hold of her hands in his. Before she knew it, his lips were on hers, and she found herself not wanting the kiss to end at all.


	18. Chapter 18

Eddie dropped Loren off at Don's clinic. He asked if she wanted him to come in, but she told him she would get a ride home with her mom. This wasn't the way she wanted the night to end, so she offered to go to Mel's in an hour or so for her after prom; Lisa and Gus would be out late trying to convince Phil to come home. Eddie agreed, not wanting to be without Loren. He kissed her goodbye and whispered "I love you" before he made his way to Melissa's to help her and Adam set everything up.

Loren made her way up the stairs to Don's office; she held her heels in her hand because they began hurting her feet too much to walk on them.

"Mom?" she called as she entered the clinic. Her mom usually sat right at her desk, which the patients saw from the front doors. However, she was not there this time.

Loren took a step forward after she saw her mom's phone sitting on the pile of papers on the corner of her desk. _Maybe she is with Don_, she thought to herself. Though, it was strange, it didn't seem like anyone was there to report on the break in.

The slam of the doors behind her made her jump. She wasn't scared until she heard the famous voice of the night; Chloe's.

"Oh, so you _are_ here," she said when she saw Loren standing in front of her.

"Chloe?" Loren asked, completely confused.

"Um, yeah. Who else do I look like?" she answered, disgusted at how stupid Loren seemed to be.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, stepping back a step. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she didn't like it.

"Well, it's actually to get to you," Chloe said, acting as if she was the most intelligent person on the planet. "You see, little girl, I'm going to need you to dump that boyfriend of yours."

"Why would I do that?" Loren was bewildered at what Chloe was saying. Why on Earth would she think Loren would listen to her?

"Well it's that, or this," she said, letting a man in behind her.

Loren knew who it was; Chloe had taken him to her concert with Eddie at MK a few weeks ago. He was rude; he had told Eddie his music was terrible, and that he should write more for the teenagers to fan girl over. Eddie took his comment to heart more than any others.

"You see, _he_," Chloe told Loren, "seriously just wants anyone he can get right now. And if I give him alcohol, he'll do whatever I say." Chloe grimaced as he tried to give her a kiss. She pushed him away and told him to calm down. "So, what's it gonna be, valley girl?" she asked Loren with an evil smile.

"I'm not dumping Eddie," Loren responded, annoyed with the whole situation. She pulled out her phone to call Eddie and tell him to come back, but she heard Chloe chuckle.

Adriana came from Ellie's desk and pulled Loren down onto her mom's chair by the back of her dress. "Sorry, Loren," she said, sneering at her the whole time. "I don't think Chloe should be doing this...but she's helping me and Phil. I had to..."

"Oh, just shoo," Chloe told her, sick of having someone else do her dirty work. Adriana gave Loren a look of pity before going back to her dad's office. This was the fun part, this is what she wanted for so long. She leaned down, her blond hair falling onto Loren's shoulder, and whispered into her ear. "By the way, honey, I'd think twice about calling Eddie. Dr. Don has some interesting things in his desk...including a pistol that I had no problem taking. Now up, and let's move. We're going to my place."

Loren decided not to take her chances; she would find a way to Eddie when they got to wherever they were going. Loren got into Chloe's car with her guy friend and they made their way to Chloe's apartment, where they would stay and keep Loren captive.

Loren wasn't afraid of Chloe until she tried to stay in the car and protest. Then Chloe had shown her mean side and grabbed her face tightly with her right hand.

"Look, this can be difficult or easy. You stay here until Eddie decides to take me back. So I wouldn't try to piss me off," she told her. She was mad, and Loren could tell. She was also crazy, and Loren made a mental note to make sure someone checked her out when she got back to Eddie after all this was over.

Chloe threw her down on a chair next to her bed after they walked in. She wanted this over with, so she wasn't going to be gentle. She forced Loren's hands behind the chair and made sure they were secured and tied together for the night.

"Have fun all by yourself," Chloe told Loren, as she watched Loren try to remove herself from the chair. "And _don't_ irritate me," she added, flashing the pistol that she had, in fact, taken from Don's desk. _Now_ Loren was scared. This woman was crazy, and she had left Loren alone with the creep she had taken to MK two weeks ago. "I'll be back later; I think I should pay Eddie a visit."


	19. Chapter 19

Loren was hungry. She hoped Chloe would be back soon. She also hoped Eddie wouldn't listen to whatever lies Chloe would tell him. She knew Mel, Adam, and especially Eddie would be looking for her if she were gone any longer.

A voice broke into her thoughts; it as Eddie's. The door to Chloe's apartment opened, and then closed again. Loren knew Eddie was here; she had to let him know she was there, as well.

As soon as Loren was going to yell for Eddie, Chloe's new boyfriend stood and walked behind her chair. He put a hand over her mouth. "Don't make any noise. He's not going to know you're here unless Chloe wants him to, got it?" He waved the gun Chloe had taken in front of her face, showing her the reason she should listen to him. Then, it clicked as he disarmed the safety.

"What did you do?!" Loren heard Eddie ask Chloe frantically.

"What are you talking about?" Chloe asked Eddie, annoyed that he thought she had anything to do with Loren's disappearance.

"Loren didn't come home. You threatened her right in front of Melissa at the dance. Where is she?"

"Oh, Eddie, maybe she realized how little she meant to you. Maybe someone actually realized how well we go together. She isn't so stupid after all, if she left you so you could come back to me," Chloe answered. "Maybe she and I _could_ be friends."

Eddie had enough. He knew she was there; something didn't seem right. "Loren?!" he called, deciding to take matters into his own hands.

Loren looked at Chloe's boy toy nervously. She didn't want to be shot, but she needed Eddie to know she was there. Luckily, she didn't have to worry about her problem for much longer; Eddie came around the corner to Chloe's bedroom when he didn't get an answer. Loren heard Chloe yelling at him to wait, but she knew Eddie wouldn't listen to Chloe right now.

"What the hell is going on here?!" Eddie yelled, beginning to move towards Loren. "Are you out of your mind, Chloe?!" Then he noticed her comedian boyfriend standing behind Loren, keeping her mouth shut by putting his hand over it. For the first time ever, Eddie saw Loren scared; not nervous or anxious, but really scared.

"Stay over here, Eddie," Chloe ordered him. "Come back to me. Dump the valley girl, and I'll let her go."

"Chloe, you are completely insane," he told her straight up. "Loren, I love you. Don't panic," he told Loren, looking directly at her to make sure she understood.

Eddie took his phone from his pocket and dialed 911. Chloe, now mad as ever, hit it from his hand and let it drop to the floor. Eddie saw the call connect, however, and was thankful Chloe didn't look to see. The police would over hear this all, and she wouldn't have a clue.

"Chloe, let Loren go," Eddie demanded.

"Why?" she asked. "It looks like he's having so much fun with her." With that, Chloe flung her long hair over her shoulder and glanced at Loren and her new guy.

Eddie saw the gun, but something else was much worse. Chloe's lame excuse of a boyfriend knew how to mess with Eddie perfectly. He ran his free hand slowly down Loren's arm. She looked terrified, and Eddie was getting fed up with it. Right before the guy's hand stopped on Loren's chest, Eddie launched.

_That is enough_, he thought. He would knock the gun out of his hand when he reached him; hopefully he would be fast enough.

As he made contact, Chloe screamed, knowing Eddie could be hurt. She hadn't thought that far ahead. Eddie managed to push Chloe's boy aside, but with a cost. He heard the gun go off; he thought for a second it might not be loaded, but he knew now it was.

"What are you doing?!" Chloe yelled at Eddie. "You're supposed to come back to me, not save her!"

Eddie glared at Chloe. She was going to jail, and he would make sure of it. Before doing anything else, he made sure he had Chloe's man knocked out. He used his own weapon against him, and hit him so hard over the head he blacked out instantly. He had seen this in movies and didn't think he was capable, but his adrenalin was rushing and he knew he could do anything to save Loren.

But this time, he might have made it worse instead of better. Loren's head was down, and she was holding her breath. Eddie untied her hands and held the hair from her face. She instantly grabbed at her stomach and he knew she had been hit.

Eddie, or Chloe's boyfriend, had shot Loren, and he couldn't do anything but wait for the cops to show up.


	20. Chapter 20

"Loren?! Loren, babe, answer me!" Eddie yelled, ignoring the rest of what was happening around them.

Hopefully the cops had traced the call by now and sent out a squad and ambulances. Eddie was hurt; he lost his mom, but he wouldn't lose Loren. He was there this time, unlike during the car crash. That had to mean something...

Eddie grabbed Loren's face with his hands and turned her towards him. "Loren?!" he asked again, trying to sound calm. "Come on, please say something. I love you, babe. Just say something; anything!"

Loren tried to focus, but it was hard. She took deep breaths, trying to stay with Eddie until someone came to help. Finally, she managed to gather enough air to talk, and forced out painful words. "I'm okay," she answered him. "I love you too, Eddie."

Eddie was ecstatic to hear Loren say something back to him; he knew she must have been in pain. He dropped his right hand and took hers. He tightly held it, squeezing it every time he saw her inhale. He wanted to distract her from how much it hurt and how much blood she was losing sitting in the chair.

Finally, he heard someone barge through the front door. They had come.

Everything was a blur to Loren, but somehow in the back of her mind, she heard a deep voice ordering Chloe to stand against the wall with her hands out and for her boyfriend to kick the gun to them. She heard Eddie tell them she needed medical attention, but his voice sounded far away even though he was still right next to her.

Once she realized people were there to help, she let her concentration leave her. She just hoped Eddie would forgive her for leaving him when she woke up.

* * *

Eddie was as calm as he could keep himself; after losing it when Max had told him Katy didn't make it so many years ago, he thought he could handle this similar situation. Loren was strong though, and he knew she could hold on if she tried. He hoped she would, for him at least.

Eddie hated himself, though. This was her prom night; a night she would remember for the rest of her life. Now, she would have to remember the hospital visit.

What was worse was that he had ruined Nora's night with his dad and Mel's party. The whole school had already known about Loren's accident; Melissa had told everyone at her party. She ended it early, and was on her way with Nora, Max, and Adam to see Loren.

Eddie waited by himself. He had only called Melissa, Nora, and Max a half an hour ago. The group had to assemble before they came to the hospital.

The waiting room seemed so empty; it was late. By the time the ambulance had gotten there and Loren had gone into surgery, it was nearly two in the morning. Now, it was closing in on three, but Eddie wasn't tired at all. Instead, he was wide awake worrying about Loren and trying to figure out how to explain this all to her mom. At least one thing was relieving about all of this; Chloe was gone. For good. Well, at least until she had a trial for her crimes.

Loren's surgeon interrupted Eddie's thoughts; Eddie stood when he saw him coming to talk to him. He tried to read his facial expression, but saw nothing hinting either good or bad about Loren.

"Mr. Duran," he began, trying to choose his words carefully. "There's a lot to tell you."

All at once, Eddie felt like his world had come crashing down on him. This hurt; he hadn't hurt this bad since his mom had passed away.

"Where is she?!" he asked, tearing up. "She's okay, right?!" Eddie didn't cry, so this scared him. Unless he counted when his mom died; that was the only time he had let himself get to that state.

"Calm down, sir," the surgeon replied, using the calmest voice as possible to show an example. "Ms. Tate will be fine."

As soon as those words left the surgeon's mouth, Eddie let out an enormous breath. A weight was lifted from his shoulders; Loren was going to be fine. He had saved her.

Then, the surgeon continued. "However, the baby wasn't as lucky."


	21. Chapter 21

"The _what_?!" Eddie asked, letting out a short breath as his eyes widened. Ha he heard the surgeon right?

"Oh, you didn't know. The baby. Loren-" The surgeon tried to explain, because Eddie obviously had no clue, but Eddie cut him off.

"We only had sex once!" Edie insisted. He knew he was letting off steam right now, but this was the only way he would be able to stay calm for Loren when he was allowed to see her.

"Did you use protection?" the surgeon asked. He knew this was the first thing he should ask; if they were careless enough not to, then yes, of course this would happen.

"Yes. I mean, I'm pretty sure..."

"Sometimes, especially if it's the girl's first time, it can be a little more difficult and the extra tension and pressure can cause the condom to break. That may have been what happened here."

Eddie was silent, processing the information. He was 24; he didn't need a sex talk, especially not when Loren was in such a bad condition.

The surgeon continued, taking the quietness as his cue to explain further. "Loren only had the very beginning of the embryo. I'd say no more than two weeks." This sentence rung in Eddie's ears; at least it was _his_. That made things a little easier to deal with. The surgeon continued, figuring he wouldn't get much else out of Eddie for now. "Loren bled out too fast, causing the fertilized egg to die. The stress and her body's loss of blood so quickly killed it; it just couldn't handle the living conditions. Loren, though, was much stronger. We operated and removed the bullet. She has stitches, so she just needs some rest. Once the wound heals, though, she'll be good as new. Well, except for the baby."

Eddie was about to ask when he could see Loren, but something unexpected stopped him from talking at all.

"What baby?!"

Nora's voice was ringing throughout the empty waiting room. Eddie felt his heart stop; how was he supposed to tell Nora that he, in fact, got her baby girl pregnant.

"Eddie?" Nora stood, demanding answers.

"Okay seriously, what is going on here?!" Mel asked. She was as confused as Nora, and as hurt as Nora. Loren was her best friend; how could Eddie let this happen?

Eddie was speechless; he simply fell into a chair and sat. Max quickly sat down next to him, trying to comfort his son, while Mel and Adam sat across from the Duran boys. Nora stayed standing, waiting for someone to update her. The surgeon explained the whole situation again to Loren's mother after she introduced herself. The whole time, Eddie watched Nora shoot him glares. He was in trouble, and he knew it.

The surgeon told them all they could visit Loren, but only for a little while. After that, only family could stay the rest of the night. As he turned and walked back to the ER, Nora dropped her bag and fell into her seat next to Melissa. Melissa took her hand, trying to keep her from passing out like her daughter always did.

"Nora?" Max asked, looking across the aisle at her. "Nora, she's going to be okay. You heard the surgeon."

"Max, don't!" Nora stopped him, her voice hard and cold. "Eddie, you and I need to talk, and soon. Now if you excuse me, I have to go tell my daughter that she _was_ pregnant, and then because her rock star boyfriend got her into this situation, and the whole pregnancy situation in the first place, now she's not."

Everyone tried to make sense of Nora's rant. They understood, but her whole speech was such a run on that it took them a few extra seconds to comprehend it.

Eddie stood, stopping Nora before she went to see Loren. He placed his hand on her arm and she turned to face him. She was upset, and he understood that very well.

"Nora, please," he started. He needed her to forgive him. "I never wanted this to happen to Loren. We were safe, I promise. Something must have happened, just like the surgeon said." Eddie saw Nora's eyes grow softer and he knew she had to be coming off the rush of emotions that she had just had. "Nora, please just give me a few minutes with Loren. I promise, I'll make this okay."

Nora was frustrated, but she agreed. She knew Eddie never meant to hurt Loren. Sighing, she let him go in first, and went to sit with Max and talk everything out.

Eddie watched her go and then headed into Loren's room. The first thing he heard was the beep of her heart rate on the machine next to her bed. She looked so weak, and it was all his fault. He should have never agreed to meet her at Melissa's.

"Loren?" he asked.

She stirred and smiled at the sound of his voice. "Eddie?"

Eddie's heart raced when he heard her voice; she really _was_ okay. Everything would be fine. She would make it through this, and they would be living their normal...or close to normal...lives in no time.

"Hey, babe," he said quietly. "I'm right here." Eddie took Loren's hand in his and squeezed, just as he had when they were waiting for the cops to arrive.

"Eddie, I'm so sorry," Loren whispered. She blinked her eyes open and tried hard to focus on Eddie's perfect face. "You look so amazing," she added, smiling. Eddie laughed at her joke and tried not to cry. Loren, noticing him trying to blink away the water in his eyes, laughed as well. "Please don't be upset. I told you I'd be fine."

"You were right," he told her. He wanted to stay this happy, knowing she was okay, but he knew he promised Nora he would take care of Loren. He had to tell her eventually. "I love you, Loren Tate."

"I love you too, Eddie Duran," she replied, loving that she was feeling better just because he was with her.

Eddie smiled, trying to look okay. However, he was completely devastated. He and Loren would have been parents; they hadn't even had time to discuss it. Chloe had ruined everything, and she would pay. But for now, he and Loren had to face the outcome of everything.

"Loren, I need to tell you something," he started. Loren nodded, urging him to continue. "Babe...I'm so glad that you're okay. And I'm so sorry you got hurt. It's all my fault, Loren. All of this."

Eddie started to feel more and more guilty, which upset him further. Loren squeezed his hand, letting him know that she was there this time.

"Eddie, nothing is your fault. You came to get me."

"Loren, you were pregnant." Eddie finally came out and told her. "You would have had a baby, Loren; my baby."


	22. Chapter 22

Eddie was nervous; he was waiting for Loren to say something. Did she hear him right? Did she hear him at all? Should he tell her again?

Finally, Loren's lips pulled up in a smile and she began laughing. Eddie was confused as ever, trying to figure out what was going through her mind that made her laugh.

"Okay, I was _not_ pregnant. Come on, Eddie, you know I wouldn't believe that!" Loren felt hurt that he would lie to her, but it was okay because she just couldn't stop laughing. At least he was trying to keep her mind off of what had happened.

"Loren," Eddie said, making sure his face was serious. "I'm not joking..."

Loren didn't believe him; she couldn't believe him. "How could I be pregnant?" she asked, knowing they were safe.

"Well, maybe it broke or something..." Eddie responded. His voice trailed off, and instantly Loren could tell he was nervous. She knew he wasn't lying.

"I was...I was pregnant?" Loren asked, but it came out as a question to herself more than to Eddie.

Eddie pulled Loren's hand up and kiss the back of it. He was trying not to show how hurt he was; it would be stupid for them to have a baby now, especially because they had only been dating a few months now. But part of him was upset, because he knew Loren would have been a perfect mother; a mother like Katy.

Loren was shocked. She couldn't speak, even if she knew what to say. She looked at Eddie, silently asking for some sort of support to get her mind going as she took in this information. Eddie told her what had happened and how it had died, and Loren was astounded. The two agreed not to tell anyone outside of Mel, Adam, Nora, and Max; it would kill her rise to stardom if the public found out. IT would also destroy Eddie's career.

Finally, after a moment more of silence, Loren spoke. "I wonder what it would have been..." she said quietly, almost a whisper.

"What do you mean?" Eddie's stare was blank; was Loren really thinking that she would have kept the baby?

"A boy or a girl," she told him, watching his facial expression change.

"Loren," he began, taking her hands in his again. "Babe, do you really think a baby would have been a good idea right now?"

Loren answered automatically. "No." Then she smiled and squeezed Eddie's hand. "I was just hoping you had figured out how to stop time by now, and maybe we could have it," he joked, remembering when Eddie had tried to stop time at his apartment.

Eddie let out a laugh; Loren was adorable. He knew she was just trying not to think about it right now, but that was okay. He leaned down to kiss her, not able to resist anymore. Then he remembered Loren's mom in the waiting room.

"Nora is here," he told her, informing her of her mother and the rest of the party sitting in the waiting room. "Oh, and I brought you your phone." Eddie pulled it from his pocket, knowing it would give Loren something to do while she was stuck in the hospital. "It looks like you have a text from Mel," he added, letting her know there was something waiting for her.

"Oh." Loren took it, giving Eddie a look that said 'thank you', and opened the text from Mel.

_Lo, I love you! I kno youll make it thru this! BTW, look out your window...everyone else loves u 2!_

Loren was utterly confused, but she asked Eddie to do what Mel asked of them. He pulled the curtain back and looked, his gaze landing on the thousands of fans that seemed to have gathered to cheer Loren's recovery on.

"Babe, a bunch of your fans are here," he told her.

"My what?!" Loren asked, not believing she had heard him right. "I don't have fans!"

Eddie laughed. "Everyone's gathered outside." He turned back to her, but he made sure she stayed in bed. "I'll go give the press what they want in a little bit, but for now, please stay in bed. I feel bad enough; if you get up and hurt yourself more, it'll kill me."

Loren understood and agreed. She laid back down, but her hand immediately shot to her phone at her side when it went off again. Another text from Mel.

_Lo, get Eddie out here ASAP! Look what Max was just sent!_

Loren opened the two links that followed. The first one had a big headline that read: "Carter Arrested For Kidnapping". The second, however, was the more important one. As soon as Loren saw the title, she did her best to hide it from Eddie. It read: "New Info Proves Carter Killed Katy Duran".


	23. Chapter 23

"What's up?" Eddie knew something was wrong with Loren. She was hesitant to reply and held her phone away from him so he couldn't see what she was reading.

"Nothing..." Loren replied, deciding to lie and say Mel sent her an article saying Chloe was arrested. "I feel better..." she told him. This was the truth; it felt safer in the world without Chloe Carter roaming and jumping on every chance she got to talk to Eddie.

"You know she still has a trial. And if she isn't decided guilty, she won't go to jail." Eddie hated telling Loren this; he wanted Chloe gone as much as she did.

Loren's face stayed the same, blank stare. "I know. But at least for now..." She went back to text Mel, but she noticed Eddie looking more worried.

"Loren, I know there's something you're not telling me," Eddie stated, peering over her shoulder at her phone.

"I just..." Loren began, but knew if she continued to lie, Eddie might be more mad at her than anyone else. She sighed and looked up at Eddie, giving him her best puppy dog eyes so she wouldn't be dismissed when he became upset. "Eddie..." Loren let out a breath after this; this was difficult. "There's an article...it says Tyler came forward with evidence about who killed your mom. It was Chloe..." The last sentence came out as a whisper; she was expecting an angry reaction from Eddie.

Instead, Eddie just stared back at her. "Let me see," he said, his voice monotone. He had no expression; he was confused, hurt, and unsure that the media was telling the truth.

Loren handed Eddie the phone reluctantly, and watched as he skimmed through the article Melissa had texted her a link to. His eyes closed momentarily after he finished reading it. He handed back the phone to Loren and sat for a minute longer, before standing up.

"Loren, I'm sorry. Do you mind if I take some time alone? I need some space right now." Eddie knew he should be there for Loren, especially since she was just admitted to the hospital and lost her baby; Eddie's baby. But he would be back in the morning to take her home.

Eddie hoped she would understand, and she did. "No, please, I'll be fine," she told him seriously. "Eddie?" she added, just before he opened the door.

He turned, trying his best to smile at her. "Yeah?"

"I love you."

* * *

The next hour or so seemed to be a blur. Loren, knowing Eddie's phone would be off while he took a night to let things sink in, decided she would let him know she was there for him, no matter what. She sent him a text, which read: _I'm here, if you need me. I'm so sorry, Eddie_

Eddie had left, but before he and his dad took off to discuss the breaking news, he let Melissa, Adam, and Nora in to visit Loren.

Mel and Adam stayed for a little while; Mel tried her hardest not to cry in front of Loren, but the thought of losing her best friend almost killed her herself. She didn't even want to think about how Loren must have felt. She was only eighteen, yet she had been shot and pregnant already.

Adam comforted Mel while the girls talked; he didn't like awkward situations, so he didn't say much. The two told Loren they would visit her once she was home the next day. It was a weekend, so they would be over in the morning.

Nora wasn't as comforting though. First, she lectured Loren about being safe, in more than one way. She told her she had to be careful if she was going to be sleeping with Eddie, but Loren already knew; it was an accident, and she did everything she could have done to prevent it from happening in the first place. Then Nora told her that she should always watch her back. Loren was afraid she would pull out pepper spray and tell her she couldn't leave the house without it. In all honesty, she wouldn't put it past her mom.

Loren, explaining what really happened and why she had gone to the clinic, finally got her mother to calm down. After a long discussion, Nora just hugged Loren; she hugged her lightly, so she wouldn't hurt her, but tight enough that she knew Loren wouldn't fade from her arms just yet.

"Loren, you scared me," Nora admitted. "I thought I'd lost you, and that would have killed me."

"Mom," Loren laughed, "you sound like Eddie." Loren knew her mom was being serious though, sp o she cut the jokes and answered her again. "I'm sorry. It was stupid, and I'm so lucky that Eddie guessed it was Chloe behind everything."

Nora smiled. "You are, sweetie. He's a great guy." She hated to admit this, but even though he had gotten Loren pregnant, she knew he cared about her. She decided to change topics after this, and asked Loren how the beginning of prom was.

Loren relived the night through her stories that she told Nora. When she got to Eddie's performance, she felt her heart flutter. It wasn't fair; Eddie still gave her butterflies.

"And he said 'I love you'," Loren told Nora. But then she finished with "And I passed out."

Nora's only response was to hug Loren again. Her daughter was so fragile!

The hug was broken by Loren when she reached for her phone that had just gone off with the sound of a new text. She pulled it out to read it, and was thrilled when she saw it was from Eddie. She had hoped he would be okay, and this was the message that would prove that.

However, it was a little different. She opened it and her face fell at what he had sent her.

_I told you I needed space. This is done, Loren. I needed you to respect that._


	24. Chapter 24

Eddie woke the next morning, his head pounding. He was laying on the couch at his dad's. For a moment, he couldn't remember how he had gotten there. Then it all came rushing back to him.

Loren had been kidnapped by Chloe. Eddie had saved her, but she had been shot in the process by mistake. She was pregnant; she lost the baby because of the bullet. Chloe was arrested, as was Dylan, or whatever his name was; Eddie couldn't remember, really. Oh, and Chloe had killed his mother so many years ago.

_Max must have driven us back here_, Eddie thought to himself.

He sighed, sat up, and tried to ignore his massive headache. He had drank a lot the night before; he tried to drown his painful night at the bar in MK with Max. Max had more experience with alcohol, though; he was able to drink as much as they did and still wake up without a hangover.

Eddie tried to process everything coming in at once. He had to visit Loren; he shouldn't have left her last night. After everything that had happened, he acted selfish and irresponsible. Even while finding out Chloe had killed Katy Duran, Eddie should have stayed with Loren. Katy was never coming back. Loren could have been gone as well, but she wasn't, and Eddie needed to help her while she was still with him.

On the other hand, though, Eddie knew he wasn't over what Chloe had done. He was still in pain, and last night was the angriest he had been since she had died in the first place. He remembered asking Loren to give him space the night before at the hospital, but he thought he should text her just to let her know that he still needed some time alone. At this point, he didn't even want to talk to Max.

He picked up his phone from the coffee table and opened his text conversation with Loren. He was going to send her something sweet, saying he would visit later, but then he saw the message he had sent her the night before.

Poor, innocent Loren, had become his punching bag. Eddie couldn't believe what he had sent to her until he read through it a couple more times. _I told you I needed space. This is done, Loren. I needed you to respect that._

Instantly, he decided to call Loren to apologize and find out when he could come and see her. Nothing mattered but that anymore.

"Eddie," he heard Nora answer after a few rings. She didn't sound happy.

"Nora? Hey, where's Loren?" he asked, trying to sound as nice as he could.

"Eddie, stop calling her. You've done enough."

That was all Eddie had heard before he realized Nora had hung up on him. Loren must have felt horrible. She was probably up all night; Eddie knew when something bothered her, she couldn't sleep.

Throwing his phone down, Eddie stood up and began pacing. He had to do something to say he was sorry. He had to see her.

Eddie quickly grabbed his keys and made his way to the hospital. He didn't care that his hair was a mess or that he was in his clothes from last night; he just had to see Loren.

Eddie only found out when he arrived that Loren was discharged from the hospital later that day because of the constant paparazzi outbursts at the entry way. The doctors knew she could heal at home as long as she stayed in bed, which is what she did. Eddie had arrived just moments too late and completely missed the Tate girls leave. He had failed, and there was nothing he could do. Maybe a clean break was what was supposed to happen, and perhaps that was better than trying to apologize to her; he knew she was hurting and he had been a complete jerk to her. He lost her, and it was his fault. He didn't deserve her, and he knew that.

Nora took care of Loren over the weekend and tried to keep her mind off of Eddie. Eventually, Loren told Melissa what he had sent to her. Mel wasn't happy either; it took every last bit of Loren's strength to make sure she didn't go kick his butt for her. Instead, the girls stayed in Loren's room and gossiped for a few days; Mel actually convinced Lisa to let her stay over so he could be with Loren.

After the weekend was over, Melissa and Adam were off to school again. Loren had an excused absence for at least the next week. Nora made sure she was okay before she went to work on Monday morning; she knew she was already fifteen minutes late, but she really didn't care.

When she finally left, Loren was alone. It was so quiet and weird; for the past three days, everyone wanted to talk to her and see how she felt. Now all she wanted to do was sit in the sunlight outside and listen to the birds and maybe write some songs. Although, what she really wanted was to talk to Eddie. However, she still hadn't heard from him, and if she tried to call him after what he sent her, she would seem like the crazy one and the tabloids would be all over her.

After a few hours of quiet, Loren decided to go to her spot above the Hollywood sign. She hadn't been there since she met Eddie there by accident. Remembering this killed her, but it was the only place she knew there wouldn't be other people...especially the paparazzi.

She drove up the hill, making sure she didn't pull too much at the stitches in her stomach. She was careful, and luckily, she didn't reopen the cut or bleed on the trip there.

When she stepped out of the car, Loren smiled and took in the fresh air; it was the only sunlight and air she had gotten since the day of prom. She made her way to the spot where she and Eddie sat, wanting to erase the line she had drawn in the dirt that day. She didn't want to remember him at all after this; this was going to be her time to let it all out and cry as much as she wanted to. No one could see her, and no one would know. Loren promised herself that when she made it home, Eddie would be nothing more than a professional friend, if that, and nothing could keep her down.

However, when Loren got to the dusty patch of ground where she always sat, she realized she wasn't alone. Loren tried to keep in her sadness and tried not to seem weak. Barely able to speak out of shock, she asked, "Eddie? Is it really you?"


	25. Chapter 25

Loren waited for the man to turn around. He had a cap, sunglasses, and dark hair. But when he turned around, Loren was disappointed.

"Sorry, ma'am, my name's not Eddie..." he said quietly.

"Oh, sorry," Loren said, trying to push away her depression that was coming up again after that burst of hope that Eddie still cared about her and the things and places they shared. "I just thought someone I knew would be up here."

"Well, I was just about leaving anyway..." With that, the mystery guy got up and made his way down the road. Loren made a note in her head that there must have been a parking lot elsewhere that she didn't know about, because there was no way he could walk on his own.

She smiled, finally happy that she was able to analyze something besides Eddie for a change. But that didn't last long. As soon as she saw the line in the dust, she felt the tears coming. For days, she had hidden her feelings inside; she didn't want anyone to see her break, but it was killing her. First her dad leaves, and then Eddie. And what made it worse was that she knew full well she loved him. Loren really cared about Eddie, and as soon as she told him, he left. Had he not meant it when he told her at the dance?

Loren spent the rest of her time on the hill reflecting on everything. After a while, she couldn't take it anymore. She let herself cry, and she cried as much as she could. However, as much time as she took to cry, the more she hurt.

To Loren, it seemed as if everything were going wrong. With everyone walking away from her, all she had was her mother and Mel left. Nora spent so much of her time now with Max, though, that Loren barely saw her anymore. Melissa was always with Adam or dealing with family troubles. Who even cared if she had been shot and hurt by Eddie?

Loren tried to remember the last happy night she and Eddie shared. She knew that after everything had happened, people had gathered at the hospital. But she also knew that most, if not all, of them were simply there for Eddie, or to support Loren to get Eddie's attention. She wasn't a star yet, and he was; it just made sense.

Tears left her eyes as she dug a stick into the ground, recreating the line that she had made the last time she and Eddie had shared the spot. Everything hurt, and as much as she tried not to think about Eddie or anything they had meant to each other, she couldn't help but miss him. She would always love him.

Picking up her phone, Loren decided to call her mom. She didn't want to talk, she just wanted to tell her something. Luckily, Nora didn't pick up. Loren waited for the beep before she spoke.

"Hey, mom, it's me," she said, trying to hide the change in her voice because she was crying. "I just wanted to tell you I love you." She couldn't say any more. Loren was too upset, and she didn't want to worry her mom. "Just call me back," she said, ending her message.

She put her phone down, but felt another wave of anger and tears fill her body. She knew she would hurt if Eddie had ever left her, but not like this. She let it out and slammed her fist down onto the ground. Letting out a yelp of pain, Loren brought her hand to her lap and looked at the blood streaking across her knuckles. One of the rocks must have been sharp and dug into her skin when she pounded her fist on the dirt.

Something inside Loren, though, didn't care that it hurt. Maybe it was a good thing; she can let out her suffering through the cut. It was stupid, but it felt like it helped. Maybe if she made another, this time on purpose, she would feel more relieved of Eddie's painful goodbye.

Lorne was never a dark person. She was always happy. But losing a second person she loved drove her off the edge. No one would notice. No one would even come looking for her if she stayed out long enough. They knew she was responsible and she would be able to find her way back. If she didn't, they would always call her; she always had her phone, in case Eddie wanted to call and apologize.

Loren looked at what she had done. The stone she had found was sitting in her hand, and her palm had a bigger gash on it. The blood seeped out, like it did when she had been shot. She felt her heart stop, and embarrassment came over her instantly.

_What in the world have I done?_ Loren thought to herself.

Loren wanted to toss the rock and find a way to stop the bleeding so she could get home and fix it up and get herself together. But before she could do anything, something else stopped her.

"Loren?"

Loren heard a voice call her name. The footsteps came closer, and when she spun around, she couldn't believe what she saw. She wanted to hug him, but there wasn't time for that before he began to worry about her.

"Eddie?" she whispered, knowing it was him.

Eddie ripped his glasses off and threw his hat on the ground as his eyes widened. "Loren?! Loren, please stop! What are you doing?! Please, just put that down; don't do this! Don't hurt yourself!"

And just like that, Loren felt her blood run cold. "It's not what you think," she told him quietly, knowing everyone who said that never really meant it.

Eddie felt horrible. This was the worst thing he had ever seen. Loren had cut herself, and it was all his fault.


	26. Chapter 26

Eddie felt his heart break; it felt almost as bad as when Max told him Katy hadn't survived. Now, nothing between them mattered as far as he was concerned. He knew he was wrong, but that could wait until later; right now, he just wanted Loren safe.

"Eddie, what are you doing here?!" Loren asked, completely shocked to see him.

"I came to think," Eddie answered quickly, wanting to get to what was going on in front of him. "Loren, please put that down," Eddie begged, motioning to the stone in her hand.

Loren willingly threw it over to him; she hated herself right now. How could she do something so stupid and irresponsible?

"Eddie," she began, her voice shaking. She was lost for words; so much had happened between them since the night of prom.

Eddie didn't care. He glanced form the stone to the cut on Loren's palm and that was when he had had enough.

"Loren, don't," Eddie told her, not wanting her to finished.

Instead of continuing, Eddie lost himself and ran for Loren. He needed her in his arms, so he could protect her again. He watched as Loren's shoulders fell and she loosened up; Eddie knew she had been waiting for this for the past few days.

Eddie threw his arms around Loren as soon as he reached her. She held him tightly, hers around his waist. She buried her head in his shoulder and tried to take deep breaths to control herself. Her hair was a mess, her palm was bleeding, and she felt like the whole world was spinning. This was what she had wanted to happen with her and Eddie, but not under these circumstances.

Eddie felt her going weak in his arms. He knew she had to lay down, and soon, and he needed to do something with that cut on her hand. But he could fix that; he didn't need to take her to the hospital until he knew how everything had happened.

"Loren?" he asked, making sure she was still conscious.

"Hmm?" she asked, still taking deep breaths.

Eddie pushed her away from him so he could look into her eyes. "Loren, I'm so sorry," he told her sincerely. He saw the hurt in her eyes, but he was going to make it right, if it was the last thing he did. "Please, just let me get you somewhere so you can rest," he begged, knowing that that cut on her palm was the least of his worries. She still had stitches in her stomach, which this really couldn't have been helping.

She agreed, but when she took steps to walk towards Eddie's car, she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She pulled it out and answered when she saw it was her mom.

"Mom?" she asked as an answer.

"Loren?! Loren, are you okay?! Where are you?!" Nora sounded panicked, as she should be.

"Mom, I'm with Eddie," Loren answered. She waited for her mother to freak out, saying that she needed rest and not time with Eddie right now, but that never came.

Instead, Nora sounded relieved. "I was so worried," she told Loren. "I got your voicemail...I thought something happened to you."

"I'm sorry," Loren said. "Mom, I was just so upset..."

"Aren't you mad at Eddie?" Nora asked, changing the subject. "Honey, he hurt you so badly."

"I know, mom, but I have to let him talk."

With that, Loren said goodbye, I love you, and that she would be home by ten. She knew she needed rest, but she wasn't sure whether or not she would be home early enough for dinner.

Eddie drove slowly back to his house. He didn't want Nora to see Loren like this; her hand was still covered in dried blood. Luckily, the wound had stopped bleeding.

"Loren," Eddie said, breaking the silence that took over the car as they drove. They were nearly half way there before he spoke. "I love you so much," he told her. He glanced at her, making sure she was listening. Loren was watching him, listening with an open mind on everything; she really just wanted him back.

It wasn't about Eddie or his music or being famous; it was about Eddie, the guy Eddie. The man, rather. Loren missed the sweet guy she used to know; the guy who treated her well.

"I was drunk," Eddie continued, knowing she deserved an explanation. "Max and I spent the night at the bar in MK, and I just couldn't stop. It felt like it helped, you know?"

Loren nodded slowly, her eyes meeting Eddie's second glance over. "That's kind of how this felt," she answered, holding up her palm.

"Loren," Eddie said seriously. "Promise me you'll never try to hurt yourself like that again. Promise me and never let go of that promise, you understand?"

Loren's heart skipped a beat; she had disappointed Eddie and she knew it. But she wouldn't let it happen again; she wouldn't let it even if he hadn't asked her.

"I promise," Loren said, nodding.

Then, she smiled; this was the first smile Eddie had seen since the night of prom. "Never let go of that, please? This is serious, and you need to be serious about it."

He finally felt the world becoming normal again as she continued. "I'll never let go, I promise."

"Good." Eddie was content; he knew she would keep her promised. "Loren, you really scared me." He turned his head to her when they hit a red light as the exited the park, making sure she was feeling better. "I'm going to clean that up, and then I want you to rest, okay? We can talk about us later, but just know that I do want to be with you, Loren. I never wanted to break up."

Loren smiled, and leaned in to kiss him. She couldn't take it anymore. Eddie took the simple kiss as an agreement, and hugged her tightly. He responded by giving her quick, little kisses on the top of her head, trying to comfort her.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, stepping on the gas when the light turned green. "We could stop and pick up some-"

"_Eddie, watch out!_" Loren yelled as she grabbed onto her seat with her hands and held on for dear life.


	27. Chapter 27

**To the reviewer who recognized the lines in the last chapter as the lines from Titanic...LOVE YOU!**

**My favorite movie of all time, and Leo DiCaprio is my first cousin of some sort. :D  
**

Nora was worried; where was Loren? It was getting late, and she worried about her daughter, especially with the stitches still in her stomach. She was also curious about what she would say to Eddie. She was nervous; she had trusted Eddie, but that was before he chose to break Loren's heart and not try to contact her afterwards.

She decided to call Max and see if he had heard from them. If something bad had happened, Eddie would have either called his dad or tried to visit him.

Nora waited for an answer, and panicked when he didn't pick up until the last few rings.

"Nora?" Max Duran asked, answering.

"Max, hi," Nora replied. Then, she got straight to the point. "You haven't heard from Loren have you?"

"No, why?"

Nora was more worried; she hoped Max could calm her fears. "She just told me she was with Eddie..."

Max understood. "Eddie won't hurt her, Nora. But I'll let you know if I hear from either of them."

Nora thanked him, and tried calling her daughter again.

* * *

Eddie slammed on his brakes when he heard Loren scream. The car skidded to a stop, and he threw his right arm across Loren's chest to protect her in case she went flying. His heart was racing, and he looked around frantically for what had scared Loren.

"Are you okay?" Eddie asked Loren, making sure she was hurt _more_.

Eddie watched as Loren nodded silently and pointed out her window. He saw a deer fawn trot away and into the bushes at the edge of the road, and he let out a long breath that he had been holding the whole "accident".

"A deer?" Eddie asked, confused.

Loren nodded, still not speaking. Eddie noticed she was still grabbing at the seat, so he sighed and took her hands in his and started to laugh.

"You mean to tell me you're afraid of a little deer?" Eddie asked her, amused that she was afraid of something so simple. There was a lot he didn't know about her, but he knew she had a few cute quirks. This was one of them.

"All deer," Loren corrected him. Her voice suddenly shrunk as she became embarrassed. "Not just that one..."

Eddie smiled his amazing smile and Loren's heart melted; she had missed it. She missed his voice, his smile, and everything else about him. She was glad to have it back, at least for right now. And to think, she had just thought no one cared. She should have called Eddie; it would have saved her the pain.

_Speaking of pain_, Loren thought to herself when she realized she was still clawing the passenger side seat. She let her grasp go and mouthed "ow" as she covered her one palm with her other hand. She had forgotten the cut hurt; she knew she had to get it cleaned before it became infected and hurt worse.

Eddie sighed and gave her a look of concern. The beep of the car behind them made him jump, though, and he put the car into drive. But before he could speed off, there was a knock at his window. He rolled it down, gave Loren a grin, and then turned to see who was at his car.

"Eddie?! Are you okay?! I saw the whole thing, I thought you might be hurt!"

Eddie unbuckled his seat belt, put on his flashers, and got out of the car. He was infuriated. This had to be a dream, because if it wasn't, someone would be seriously injured, and soon.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked, trying to keep his voice calm; it clearly wasn't working, though.

Chloe's blond hair fell over her shoulders and her bracelet jingled as she brushed it back. She needed to see if Eddie was okay; she could care less about Loren, but if Eddie was hurt, she would hunt that deer down and murder it.

"Well?!" Eddie was yelling now. She was supposed to be locked up; how dare she try to talk to him after what she did to his family. "I swear, Chloe, this is the last damn time you'll speak unless you start giving me some answers!"


	28. Chapter 28

Eddie couldn't hold back. He grabbed Chloe by her collar and pushed her back, into the deserted street. Anger swept through his body; this was the woman who killed Katy Duran, his mother. This was the woman who hid that secret from him, and then proceeded in dating him for over a year. How in the world was she not in jail?

"What the hell, Chloe?!" Eddie yelled, throwing his hands up in the air. "You should be locked up, not here an trying to talk to me."

"You could've been hurt, Eddie!" Chloe yelled back, starting to cry. She knew eventually he would fall for her fake tears and come running back.

"Chloe, I am _done_ with you. I am _done _with your lies. You are absolutely nothing to me."

Eddie was finished with her. He had no respect for this woman anymore. He knew he needed to calm down, but inside, he also knew he couldn't until he got his feelings out and Chloe knew what he really thought of her.

Chloe spun in a circle, her hands pulling at her hair. "Eddie, this is crazy!" she shouted. "I just wanted to know that you were okay!"

"Really, that's all, Chloe? Well, did you care at all if I was okay when you _kidnapped_ my girlfriend?!" Eddie was even more furious now. Chloe had no respect for him or anyone he cared about; everything was about her.

"Your _girlfriend_? Please, Eddie, she's just a rebound!"

Eddie had to hand it to her; she would be a good actress. This was the same speech she had been giving him for weeks now, and she never strayed. If she kept at anything else like she did this, she might actually have a life and make her own fame and fortune. It was too bad she didn't realize that.

Eddie was calm until Chloe called Loren his rebound. Then, everything flared up again. "I love Loren," he shouted, not caring if Loren was hearing this argument now or not. "I love her more than I ever loved you, Chloe. She is more mature than you will ever be, and you not realizing that I am happier with her than I ever was with you just proves that!"

Loren, still sitting in the car, smiled when she overheard what Eddie had to say. She was pretty mad about Chloe showing up like this and still wanted to know why she wasn't arrested, but she was happy that Eddie stood up for her. She knew now that Eddie cared for her, even if he had made that drunken mistake.

Chloe, who stomped her foot in frustration, walked closer to Eddie. She gave him her best puppy dog eyes; her shoulders slumped and she hunched over a tiny bit, almost as if begging. She tried to grab for his hand, but he pulled it away.

Eddie knew she was going to throw this fit every time he saw her, from now until forever. It was sad that she had no better hobby. The wake-up call from the cops didn't seem to stop her, either.

"Chloe, why aren't you in jail, anyway?!" This was the biggest question Eddie had for her. How did this woman, who kidnapped Loren, almost raped her using another man, managed to get her shot, _and_ killed Katy Duran, get away with not going to jail.

"I'm better than most other people, Eddie," Chloe answered simply. She was more beautiful, more convincing...she could even be nicer than others if it meant she would get what she wanted. And using those skills of hers against the male judge helped. That and the fact that she was a celebrity, and no matter what she did, her first offense would get her community service at the most.

As Eddie heard all of this, including Chloe informing him that she had a year's worth of community service to complete, he lost it. He grabbed her again, this time his hands tight on her arms.

Eddie's face was close to hers within the next few seconds, and he hissed out his next few words. This, of all things, made him angry. "You almost killed Loren."

Chloe laughed in his face, not taking anything seriously. "The little girl was almost killed? She was barely hit by that shot."

That did it. Eddie pushed her back, and just as a car went through the light, she fell onto the asphalt. The sound of the car horn alerted Loren, who looked out the driver's side window. The car veered around Chloe, and the driver yelled at the two fighting in the road from his passenger window before continuing along. Luckily, Chloe wasn't hurt.

Seeing what had just happened, Loren quickly unbuckled her seat belt and stepped out of the car. She walked slowly around the car to the driver's side and stood silently. She wanted to supervise Eddie, in case this got out of hand, but there was no way she would stop Chloe from acting so stupid now. She would help Eddie, yes, but not her.

"What is wrong with you, Eddie?!" Chloe yelled from the ground. Her legs were buckled underneath her, and tears streamed down her face. Her blond hair had a twig in it, which she gathered from the fall.

Eddie was too anger to believe her tears were real. "She was hit in the stomach, Chloe. Right through; she almost bled out! You and your stupid games almost took her from me!" His fists were clenched, and he was digging his nails into the insides of his palms, but he didn't care.

Chloe could barely choke out her words between her tears. She didn't move from the ground though; this had to look convincing and Eddie had to feel sorry for her, so she stayed where she was. "Eddie, please! She is nothing! _I'm _the one who loves you!"

"You don't love me, Chloe. You never have."

Chloe only had one more option: guilt. "Eddie, I'm pregnant!"

What followed was an extreme silence. To Eddie, everything stopped. Even though she knew he was lying, the birds stopped chirping, the wind stopped rustling...there weren't even any cars around. The only reason he was furious was because Chloe did more destruction than she knew; she had killed his child he would have had with Loren.

However, before Eddie could tell Chloe this, the silence was broken. Loren, enraged, replied almost immediately.

"Ex_cuse_ me?" Loren was amazed at what lengths Chloe would go to, but this hit home. "You killed _my_ child, Chloe. Mine, not some fictional baby you made up to try and win Eddie back."


	29. Chapter 29

Chloe felt like the air had been knocked out of her lungs. "You're kidding, right?" she asked Loren, her voice as sarcastic as ever. "Eddie would never have sex with _you_."

"That's kind of how you become pregnant, Chloe," Loren answered. She continued, this time making fun of Chloe's ridiculous actions. "You killed Eddie's baby when you decided to put me in the same room as a gun."

Eddie stood where he wound up after Chloe stated the news of her "baby". He had no idea if she was serious or not, and Eddie couldn't find his voice to ask. Right now, he was completely absorbed with what Loren had just told Chloe. Chloe had murdered _his_ baby. There could have been a little Duran in the future, and it was only hitting him now how real that situation actually was.

Chloe pushed herself up, trying to balance on her stilettos. She brushed the dirt off of her slim fitting clothing and straightened her hair before she said anything more to anyone else. Once that was over with, she lifted her head back to Loren.

"Well, now that _yours_ is gone," Chloe said, completely putting Loren down before she finished, "Eddie will have more time to focus on his baby with _me_."

"You're not pregnant, Chloe," Loren said, knowing it was fact already.

Chloe was furious. She let out a growl and snapped at Loren. "You don't know anything about me; you're just a little high school girl from the valley, who shouldn't even know someone as important as Eddie Duran!"

"Chloe, that's enough!" Eddie finally said, yelling to stop this ridiculous argument. "Leave, now."

"Oh, Eddie," Chloe answered, trying to sound sweet. "You don't have to order Loren to leave like that. You could have just asked her nicely."

Eddie took a few steps toward Chloe, once again grabbing the collar of her shirt with his hands. How dare she take away his chance at being a father, especially after taking away his only mother?

However, before Eddie could say anything to her, Chloe shot a glare at Loren. She knew how to make the girl cry; it was an easy answer to everything. Chloe crashed her lips against Eddie's and pulled his body against hers.

Loren was steaming; how dare Chloe kiss her man like that. But at the same time, part of Loren wanted to run. She wanted to run far away, where she remove this image from her mind like it never even happened. She knew it wasn't Eddie's fault; she had just watched Chloe force him into this. However, Loren hated seeing this happening just the same.

Eddie didn't hesitate to react. At once, he shoved Chloe back, who once again landed on the asphalt. He spit her saliva out of his mouth right after, making sure it landed just by her now broken heel of her shoe.

"Don't you ever, _ever_, touch me again, Chloe. I love Loren, not you. You disgust me. If it wasn't for you, I might be planning on being a dad right now." Eddie was so far beyond mad, there were no words to describe it.

"You love her?" Chloe asked, laughing. "Well maybe you ought to make sure she doesn't _kill herself_ so you can stay so happy!" Then, she turned to Loren, who looked as if she was ready to pounce. "Next time, sweetie, make sure you wear long sleeves when you decide to cut yourself."

That was it; Loren had had it. She knew her cut was visible; she had just made it. She ran for Chloe, ready to destroy her. She got half way there, but before she could go anywhere near Chloe, she ran into Eddie's arms, who grabbed her and spun her around. Loren fought with all her might, trying to escape, but it was no use. Eddie was stronger, and he knew how to calm her down, even if he had never seen her act like this before.

Eddie held Loren until she stopped fighting. He looked over his shoulder, and while still trying to keep Loren under control, he made one last remark to Chloe as she got up and stomped off to her car. "Stay away from Loren, Chloe, or I swear, you will get what's coming to you."

Chloe smiled, not caring about Eddie's threat. "Just wait till Lily hears about how you don't want anything to do with our child, Eddie! How do you think your little girlfriend will feel when the world hates you?"

With that, Chloe dropped into the driver's seat of her car and slammed the door. The engine started instantly, and only seconds after, her car sped off and into the distance.

"Loren," Eddie whispered, once a moment of silence had passed. He could tell she was crying; she had calmed down, but all of her anger had turned to sadness. Eddie knew how much it had hurt her to see Chloe kiss him.

Eddie tried again. "Loren, babe, look at me?" he asked. She refused, and he sighed. Instead, he tried a different tactic. "Well, I guess I won't accompany you to your first day back to school tomorrow," he joked.

Eddie let his arms drop, and he began to make his way back to the car. Before he could open his door, Loren turned and called his name.

"Eddie?" she asked. When he turned, Loren made her way towards him quickly and kissed him, making sure her kiss was much better than Chloe's. When they parted, she asked him a single, simple question. "Would you have really wanted the baby?"

Eddie smiled; nothing got by Loren; that was part of the reason he loved her so much. "I think we would have to talk about it, babe, but possibly, yes."

Loren was happy again; eventually, Chloe's kiss would be forgotten. She just had to get some new memories in her head first. Then she remembered what Eddie had _just_ said. "Wait, you're coming to school with me tomorrow?!"


	30. Chapter 30

Eddie had taken Loren back to his place for dinner, but returned her safely to Nora before ten. He had cleaned her hand up at his house, and together the two made up a story about how she tripped and caught herself with her palm, but it unfortunately landed right on a pointy stone. Neither of them wanted to lie, but Eddie had made sure Loren promised never to do anything like that again, so there was no need to freak out Nora.

Eddie had kissed Loren goodnight, and reminded her of their promise before he left. The rest of the night seemed like a blur to her. Loren knew her mom checked out her stitches to make sure she was okay to go to class the next day, and then she passed out into a good night's sleep; it was the first night she had slept soundly in a while.

Nora took Loren's tiredness as a good sign. Before she headed to her room for the night, she made sure Loren had her alarm set for the next day. When she clicked the power button of Loren's phone to check, she noticed a new text, and even though she knew she was invading Loren's privacy, she checked it out; she really just wanted to know that no one was bothering Loren about the drama she had been through recently.

_From: Eddie (11:18 PM)_

_ Sleep tight...I'll be there bright and early to escort you to your classes tomorrow. 3_

Nora smiled to herself and left the message up on Loren's phone. She set it down and watched the screen dim as it temporarily shut off to save power while Loren wasn't looking at it. She knew Eddie was right for Loren; it just took a while to find out how much he really cared.

* * *

The next day flew by for Loren. Usually, school was the most boring part of her life and she just waited for the clock to tick and let the minutes pass before she could see Eddie again, but with him there with her, the entire day was exciting.

Loren had missed so much school; next week would be finals, and then graduation! She wasn't sure how many people had really noticed her absence, though, until she arrived with Eddie. She felt like her world was a Twilight scene; as soon as they walked onto campus, everyone stared.

Eddie had driven her to school himself; the other kids were amazed by his choice of vehicle, and some stood around it well after they had gotten out and walked into the building. Eddie made sure to talk to the school's office about him accompanying Loren throughout the day, and they were pleased to allow it. Not only was Eddie Duran going to be touring the school, but they also knew Loren had a medical situation that may require attention throughout the day.

Eddie didn't have to do much to make sure people parted for Loren; everyone made room and stopped and stared as he walked by. He wanted to make sure nothing accidentally bumped into Loren; her stitches were pretty much healed, but Eddie was still watching out for them, just in case.

"Are you always this popular?" Eddie asked, his hands in his pockets, as he walked next to Loren to her locker before first period.

Loren smiled and unlocked her locker. She grabbed a few books from it and threw them in her bag while she answered him. "No, not really. It's just because of you," she said, truthfully. She laughed, but then, before she closed her locker, she saw the torn up pictures that were left of Eddie on the inside. Embarrassed, she shut her locker as fast as she could and pretended she didn't watch him look it over before she did so.

Eddie, on the other hand, frowned. "You know, one day I'll bring you lots of pictures to replace those with."

"Aw, that's okay," Loren answered, throwing her bag back onto her shoulders. "I graduate in a week, remember? I'll have to take them down then anyway."

Eddie forgot she was almost done with school; the thought made him happier than ever. They would finally be able to get on with their careers and lives, and she would be an adult to do what she pleased.

"Do I get to come watch you graduate, miss Tate?" Eddie asked, curious. He had only ever been to his own graduation; he wanted to bring Max and cheer with the Tate girls.

"Definitely, Mr. Duran," Loren replied, laughing.

Eddie loved to see her this happy. He hadn't seen her in so long; he missed her smile and the sound of her voice when she was enjoying the moment.

"You know, summer is coming, and that means you won't have to worry about class or homework anymore," Eddie reminded Loren. He smiled and stepped up to her, putting his hands on her hips. "We can have much more alone time," he whispered.

They both smiled; Loren couldn't wait. Eddie leaned down and gave her a soft kiss, letting his lips linger on hers for a few seconds before pulling away. Loren loved his kisses; however, when everyone was silent and watching them happen, it was a tad uncomfortable.

Loren cleared her throat and looked away, signaling to Eddie that they should start walking to class. Eddie put his arm around her shoulder the whole way, doing his best to act as if the other students were just paparazzi like he was used to. Loren, on the other hand, was blushing the rest of the way; she wasn't used to having so many people present when she was openly romantic with _the_ Eddie Duran.

She got to her room, and sat down gently in her seat. She smiled to herself, her heart skipping a beat, as she watched Eddie introduce himself to her instructor. She loved how polite he was. Eddie shook her hand, and must have told her he would be staying with Loren throughout the day, because next, she signaled to a chair in the back that he could pull up beside Loren's desk in the corner.

Loren waited for Mel to arrive; the two usually sat next to each other. She hadn't told her best friend that Eddie would be there yet, and she was anxious about how she would react.

Eddie sat, as close to Loren as he could, and stretched his legs out in front of him. He made himself comfortable, ready to sit through classes he hadn't even thought about for years.

"Are you going to be okay?" Loren asked, hoping he wouldn't be falling asleep or anything like that.

"That depends," Eddie answered her, still watching her classmates file into the room. He smiled at each one that stopped and took in the scene of Eddie Duran sitting in their high school classroom.

"On what?" Loren asked, now confused.

"On whether or not you'll move in with me this summer."


	31. Chapter 31

"What?" Loren asked, staring straight at Eddie. Did she just hear him right?

Eddie smiled, but kept his mouth shut, because before he could answer Loren, Melissa walked into class. She stopped, staring from the doorway. Her eyebrows were raised, and she was stunned by the sight of Eddie sitting next to Loren.

"Hey, Mel," Loren called, smiling at her best friend. She brushed her long hair behind her shoulder and then waved to Melissa as she made her way back to their seats after being shoved aside by their classmates who were trying to enter the room.

"Hey, Lo. Hi...Eddie? How're you feeling, Lo?" Mel asked, wanting to make sure Loren was well before she returned to school. She had paused when she saw Eddie, thinking it was unusual for him to be there. However, she also remembered everything that had happened recently, and she was glad Loren had someone to care for her like that.

"I'm fine," Loren answered simply. She really didn't want to talk about Chloe or the incident or anything else.

Loren kept her arms under the desk, making sure no one saw what she had done. The cuts weren't that visible, but she wanted to make sure, just in case.

The rest of the day went by quickly. Eddie stayed with Loren the whole time, making sure her day was good. He hadn't gotten an answer out of her, so as they wandered the courtyard to say goodbye to Loren's friends for the day, he took her hand in his and squeezed it.

"So, Loren Tate, I believe I asked you a question earlier?" Eddie prompted, knowing eventually he would get an answer from her.

Loren laughed and rolled her eyes. "I already told you, they started putting letters in math back in eighth grade."

Eddie sighed; leave it to Loren to make a joke. "Loren, please?" he begged, wanting a serious answer from her. "Move in with me."

"Eddie," Loren began, trying to find the right words. "Give me some time to think about it, please? Summer, right?"

"Yes." Eddie was heartbroken; he didn't want Loren to say no.

"Well, then I'll let you know before school ends, okay?"

Eddie agreed. He knew Loren would need time to talk to Nora and Mel. He still wanted her to give him a "yes" though, because he wouldn't let her go again anytime soon, especially with the plans he had for the summer.

Eddie remembered then, though, that he needed Loren to go with him to see Jake and Kelly. He told her they would have to make a pit stop on the way home, and she was okay with it. She would gladly take this over trying to find Mel and Adam through the sea of students that wanted nothing more than a picture of Eddie to post to all of the world online.

Loren sank into the passenger side seat and let her body relax; the first day back at school was over. Eddie closed her door, and then got in the driver's side and started the engine. Before they knew it, they were on their way to Jake's office.

Eddie was glowing, which scared Loren. She knew something was up, but there was no way she'd get it out of him now; by the time Loren had caught on, they were parking in front of the office building.

She followed Eddie inside and to the elevator, which she needed to take instead of trying to walk up the stairs with her stitches still in. Hopefully they would be ready to fall out by the next day, because she was getting sick of them, and fast.

"Eduardo!" Jake greeted Eddie, shouting his Spanish name while giving him one of their handshakes and a hug with a pat on the back. "Loren," he greeted Loren, giving her a hug.

"Hey, guys," Kelly said, waving to both. She was more cheery than usual, but Loren didn't bother to ask because Jake jumped right into it.

"So, Eddie, when can we kick off this thing?" Jake asked, looking at Eddie.

Loren was confused; had she missed something? Eddie smiled and looked at the floor; he clearly didn't tell Loren about this on purpose.

"What's going on?" Loren asked, needing to know. How could Eddie keep a secret from her?

"Well, there's gonna be a tour," Eddie told her, walking back across the room and towards her. He really didn't care what Jake thought was rumors and what he knew anymore, and he took Loren's hand in his.

Jake was clearly upset, but he decided he would hold his comments until Loren was out of the room later on. They had all gotten so far with their planning, that this would only set them back further than they were before. They needed to get Eddie's material out, and soon, and Loren needed to get some experience as soon as possible.

"Oh, when?" Loren asked, smiling up at Eddie. She loved that he was so fearless with their relationship lately.

"We were hoping to start this summer," Kelly answered for Eddie, easing the idea into Loren's head.

"You see," Eddie told Loren, laughing at the look of confusion on her face. "When I said move in, there was much more to it."

Loren couldn't even answer; she was so confused, and someone needed to clear things up for her soon, or she might not make it home consciously. She felt herself get dizzy, but tried her best to hold it off. She had been getting better with her passing out lately; she almost learned to control them.

"We need you, too, Loren. Eddie can't have his next world tour without you," Kelly added.

Loren stood still, scanning the room. "World tour? Wait, why does he need me?"

"Loren," Eddie began, brushing her hair behind her ear. He knew this was a lot to take in, but he wanted to make it exciting for her. "I need you to open for me, babe."


	32. Chapter 32

"Um..." Loren didn't know what to say.

Loren loved the idea of opening for Eddie; honestly, that was her dream since she first became a fan of his. The only problem was her nervousness; how was she supposed to go on stage in a huge stadium and be perfectly fine? She would be opening for the world's biggest superstar; this wasn't just her Eddie anymore, this was the world's Eddie.

"You'll be fine," Eddie assured her. He knew she was afraid of being in front of so many people, but he also knew she could do it if she really wanted to.

"But they don't even want to hear me," Loren protested. "They all come for you, Eddie." This slightly made Loren jealous; how would she deal with all of the girls who got meet and greets before his show? Loren knew Eddie loved her, but those fans might still get under her skin.

"Loren, you're an artist now; you have fans, just like I do," Eddie told her, making sure she understood that her world was going to change because of her own music, and not just his.

Jake folded his arms. "Look, Eddie, if she doesn't want to do it-"

However, Jake didn't have time to finish his statement. Eddie jumped in, knowing Jake would most likely say something condescending. "She can do it, Jake. Trust me."

Loren smiled and let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding. "Alright," she answered. She knew she would have to practice a ridiculous amount before summer came. This was okay, though, because Loren knew she would have the best of the best there to guide her through everything.

Jake sighed and Kelly smiled, letting her body relax. They were both relieved that Loren went along with the plan, but Jake was still uneasy about the relationship he saw blooming between the two.

"Okay then," Jake replied, happy to get something accomplished. "Well then, Eddie, Loren, I've set up a photo shoot for you two for Rolling Stone. I promised them first leak of the touring details, so now that we've cleared them up, let's get you to MK and taking pictures."

"Pictures?!" Loren asked, confused. "Today?"

"Yeah," Jake said in an 'are you kidding' tone. "We can't start planning this until you both release the idea and see how the fans react."

"Oh," Loren answered, her expression blank. She turned to look at Eddie, but Eddie simply squeezed her hand and smiled, still looking in Jake and Kelly's direction.

"We'll head over there now," Eddie agreed.

Eddie finally looked at Loren and smiled. He let her hand go and told her he would meet her at the car; he wanted to say goodbye to Jake. Loren smiled and nodded. She hugged Kelly and waved goodbye to Jake before exiting. She was nervous to be on her own, but she knew she could take care of herself and her stitches for five minutes without Eddie's help.

Once Loren was out of hearing range, Eddie turned to Jake and prepared for the storm that was about to hit. He knew he tipped him off about his relationship with Loren, but right now, it didn't matter.

"Eddie," Jake said, scolding him.

Before he could finished, Eddie did so for him. "Look, Jake, I know what you're going to say, and I really don't want to hear it."

Jake sighed, defeated. He knew this was over for now, but he would surely bring it up again soon; he just had to give Eddie time before bugging him about it again. Kelly said nothing, staying out of their conversation. She went to Jake's desk and pretended to be looking through paperwork while the two finished their little argument.

"Fine," Jake answered at last.

Eddie nodded and headed for the door. "Thanks guys, I'll pick the pictures to approve and let you know how everything went."

* * *

When the two arrived at MK, Max was ready and waiting for them. He greeted them with big hugs and led them to the back corner, where the photo shoot was taking place; it was similar to the set up Loren had had when she had her photo shoot done for her new look.

Immediately, Loren was torn from Eddie and taken to a dressing room. Eddie laughed and gave her the puppy dog eyes that read _sorry_, letting her know he would see her after she changed. He simply changed his shirt to a tighter fitting black v-neck, showing what he had for his girl fans.

Eddie knew the girls would get a kick out of this photo shoot, but he wouldn't let them get away without telling the world something important. He _did_ make a promise to Loren before prom, after all. He already broke one of his promises by leaving, so he needed to make up for it by keeping as many more as he could.

When Loren returned, she came out in black, knee high boots and a short, form fitting black dress; this was done to match Eddie's look. Eddie absolutely loved it, but he had to wait to let her know until they were alone later.

Loren watched as they took Eddie first. She loved his poses; his simple smile was enough to make any girl love him. He kept his thumbs in his pockets for a few, before turning the other direction and putting them up and behind his back, which showed off his muscles. Then, the photographer had him sit backwards on a chair and lean on his arms, making him look a bit edgy. Loren laughed, because she saw this cliché pose done for so many other celebrities lately.

Then, it was Loren's turn. She was nervous, but as soon as she stepped up onto the white paper, everything came flowing back to her. She finished the chair set up that Eddie had left, smiling and laughing. The photographer had so many opportunities to catch her while she wasn't posing, which made her shots so breathtaking. Eddie made sure to keep her entertained behind the camera so she wouldn't force herself to pose.

Loren was a natural; when she moved to her standing shots, she knew just the right way to show off her body. She looked amazing, and the photographer was able to capture this all on film.

Just as she thought they were done, the photographer asked Eddie to accompany Loren in a few shots, to get the two together for the cover image of the next issue of the magazine. She was shocked, but when Eddie came to join her, Loren felt herself relax again; everything would be so easy as long as he was there.

They took one simply standing next to each other, and then Eddie was instructed to hug Loren from behind, to show off their friendship. She felt his hot breath on the back of her neck and heard him whisper that she looked amazing in the black dress she was wearing, which made her giggle. The photographer made sure to get the natural looking shot; this would be good to show their fans how much of real people they were.

Loren was so caught up in the moment, though, that she was taken aback by what happened next. She turned her head back towards Eddie to thank him for the compliment, but instead, she was met by his soft lips on hers.

In the background, Loren heard the click of the camera as their photographer caught the photo of the two openly sharing their relationship on set.


	33. Chapter 33

**Okay, so I adore all of your feedback! I'm sorry I haven't updated recently, either. Homework has hit hard recently...lots of tests before my college starts its midterms! Enjoy guys! Oh, and please continue to leave feedback; however, try not to just bug me about the next chapter. At least, try not to post that as a review on every one of the chapters, lol. Thanks!**

The next few weeks flew by. For once, Loren was able to focus on her school career instead of her music career. Kelly was on her about recording new material, but eventually she agreed on letting Loren graduate peacefully. She would start recording while traveling for the tour; Eddie had already helped her write some new songs, which she loved more than _Mars_. Somehow, working with Eddie made the lyrics flow from Loren's mind to paper a lot faster than usual. Maybe it was someone helping her out, but it could have been the fact that she and Eddie were going on their third month soon as well.

Nora was speechless when Loren announced the tour to her. At first, she was unsure about her daughter going around the world and living the life of a star, but then she remembered that Loren always dreamed of this exact situation, and she would be leaving for college soon if she wasn't doing music right now, so either way, eventually she would lose her.

A lot of Nora's strength in letting Loren go came from Max Duran. Max and Nora grew closer than they were before; they were officially a couple, now dating regularly. Eddie and Loren were ecstatic. They loved that their parents finally had someone to share the day with, even if they might be in-laws one day. Eddie found it humorous, because after Max had told him about their one date, things seemed to slow down a bit. However, they couldn't stay away from each other for long. Max knew what he had to do to win her, and he did it.

Don was extremely surprised and annoyed when Max waltzed right into the clinic and asked Nora on a date. She didn't hesitate, and when she realized Don had overheard, she begged to keep her job. Don agreed, of course; he still loved Nora, and eventually, he would steal her back.

The two made tabloids when they were seen sharing a quick kiss at Loren's graduation. Loren was the star of the show; she had the Duran boys and her mother to cheer her on from the crowd of family members when she received her diploma.

When her name was called, Loren's mother, Max, and Eddie all stood up and clapped. Eddie was heard clearly when he yelled "I love you, Loren!" as loud as he could. He didn't _have_ to try; the room was silent when it came to Loren's turn to walk because everyone was trying to get a view of Eddie and his gorgeous smile in the flesh at their graduation ceremony. Loren blushed when she heard him shout her name; she was getting used to being the center of attention, but still, for the group of high school kids she was with at that moment, it was big news that she was dating Eddie Duran.

Everything seemed to pass quickly; one moment Loren was listening to the introduction speech, and the next she was sharing pictures with Eddie in the courtyard of their school. A lot had happened while she attended that high school, and it felt perfect leaving it for the last time with Eddie holding her hand.

Loren would miss Melissa; she was heading to New York to stay with Adam while he attended college. She took her year off, as planned, and tried to work on her film career. She made plans to scout out all the big names while she was in New York; she would also get to stalk some of her favorite stars and try to spot them among the millions of people in the city.

Everything would be okay, though, because New York, New York was the first stop on Eddie and Loren's World Tour. The _Rolling Stone_ issue had hit newsstands a week after the photo shoot; they needed to get it out there as soon as possible. Jake had the venues booked for a while; he just needed Eddie and Loren to be on board before they announced ticket sales to the public. A short two days after the issue came out and announced sales starting the next morning, the show in New York, as well as many others, had sold out. Loren knew it was just because of Eddie, but she loved knowing her boyfriend was that important to so many people.

The tour hadn't bothered Loren; the cover of the issue was the problem, though. Eddie must have approved the photo without Loren noticing, but the cover was their last picture. Eddie leaned over Loren's shoulder and she turned her head back to him; they were locked in a kiss, letting the world know of their relationship. Loren was thrilled, but then Eddie alerted her to the sudden burst of fame she would be getting because of it. Eddie just laughed it off while Loren was anxious; he _wanted_ the world to know how much he loved Loren Tate. Plus, if anyone didn't know by then, they must have been living under a rock.

Finally, the day of take off arrived. Loren couldn't wait to see Melissa and Adam again, but she would also miss Nora and Max. The two would join them on their tour once the made it over to California again; Nora always wanted to see the world, so Max decided they would accompany their kids on the end half of the tour. Eddie even convinced Max to play a few songs at a show or two along the way.

Eddie managed to get Loren to board the plane after a long ten minute hug she shared with Nora. He knew she would cry, but he hoped he would keep her happy so she could enjoy her first major tour experience. When she finally agreed to go, Eddie almost had to drag her up the stairs to the small plane. Nora waved and smiled as her daughter boarded with Eddie, and Max comforted her with a hug when she broke down and cried after the door had shut and Loren couldn't see.

"So, did Jake remember to save those tickets for Mel and Adam?" Loren asked in a monotone voice once they had taken their seats. She stared out the window, thinking about everything she missed and what lied ahead. She was nervous now; she didn't have her mother to support her and keep her busy so she wouldn't let the nerves sink in.

Eddie rested his hand on hers on her chair's armrest before he responded. "Yes, he did," he told her.

Loren turned to him after feeling his hand on hers and forced a smile. "Good."

Eddie smiled back and tried to comfort her. "Loren, I promise you'll love this experience. I won't let you regret it, even for a second. Miss Tate, the world has finally opened to you. I told you nothing could stop you, and now you're finally on your way."

"Only because of you," replied Loren, this time smiling for real. Finally, she let herself relax and she melted into Eddie's brown eyes and perfect smile.

"Oh no, you've done this yourself," Eddie laughed in response. "Loren, all of my fans are your fans too, and they have been since you sang _Mars_ at MK to end my contest. They look up to you; you have talent, and that right there is more than most people."

"Really?" Loren asked, blushing and smiling.

Eddie let out a chuckle and kissed her hand. "Of course. You have such a big future waiting to happen, Miss Loren Tate." Eddie smiled, dropping her hand as Jake came over. Before Jake could interrupt though, Eddie whispered one more thing to Loren. "Maybe I'll be honored to be in that future with you sometime soon."

Loren was silent. She barely even heard Jake when he sat down across from the two.

"So," he said, not noticing Loren wasn't listening. "Ready for takeoff?"


	34. Chapter 34

When the plane landed, Melissa and Adam were at the airport to greet Loren and Eddie. They just wanted to say hi; they knew Jake would have a limo ready to go for them instead of riding with Mel and Adam. They came with signs letting the authorities know they were with Eddie and Loren, but when they entered the building, every other fan in the city must have been there with the same signs, hoping Eddie would randomly decide to let them drive him to their hotel. Melissa sighed, but showed her ID to the security, which allowed she and Adam to be escorted to the jet on the runway; the limo would be waiting for them there so they wouldn't have to deal with the fans swarming the airport.

Eddie stepped out of the plane's door, holding Loren's hand so she could follow close behind. She held her hair behind her ear as the wind blew at them; New York was a little colder than Los Angeles, even if it was summer.

Loren had never finished the conversation she was having with Eddie before the plane took off; Jake had gotten into a deep conversation about the details of the behind the scenes of the tour and Eddie must have completely forgotten what he had said to Loren. She would let it go...for now.

Loren felt relaxed for once; now, Chloe, Adriana, and anyone else she disliked, couldn't bother her and Eddie. They were in an entirely different city, on the opposite coast of the United States. This would be a nice break from the drama of Hollywood.

"Lo!" Loren heard her name being called and Melissa came running for her. She tackled her with a hug and both girls were smiling. "It's been too long!"

"It has," Loren agreed. She pulled away and looked at Mel. "Only a couple of weeks, really."

"I'm used to seeing you every day, Lo," Melissa reminded her.

"Well, now you can for a little while," Loren answered, still smiling. "You're coming, right?"

"Tonight? Of course!" Melissa was genuinely excited; she and Adam would be on the stage, behind the scenes. Loren promised them passes, and promised Melissa the okay to film whatever she wanted.

Mel and Adam walked with Eddie and Loren to the limo before saying goodbye for the car ride to the stadium; the two had sound check scheduled before the show, and they had to get there before the screaming fans became too much of a problem. The life of a star was beginning to get rough, but Loren knew she would be able to see Melissa and Adam again tomorrow too, for as long as she wanted; she and Eddie wouldn't be heading to Boston until the night after the concert.

The limo made its way onto the highway soon after the welcomes had ended; Eddie, Loren, Jake, and Kelly were all seated in the back, heading towards the stadium for a final okay of the stage and sound. However, little did they know that following behind Mel and Adam (who were following Eddie and Loren) was another car intent on following them the whole way to the venue.

"Are you sure this is the right car?" the passenger asked the driver, panicked that they were going the wrong way.

"Yes, Chloe, stop worrying," the driver replied to the blond sitting next to him.

Chloe Carter let out a huge breath from the passenger side seat as she stared out the window, her arms cross. Her morning sickness was beginning to show, and she needed Eddie to realize she wasn't lying when she told him the news a few weeks ago. The baby had to have been conceived near the end of her relationship with Eddie, making it close to three months now.

"Is this even his baby?" the driver asked, promoting Chloe for answers. "What if it's mine?"

"Tyler, just drive!" Chloe ordered. She wouldn't get into this conversation with him now; she didn't even know who the father was.

"You know I could help you raise it if you just say it's mine," Tyler continued, glancing at Chloe.

"I can't have a baby, Tyler; I'm a model!" Chloe answered, irritated that he'd even ask. "But this might be the only thing that Eddie will come back to me for."

"You're delusional." Tyler was getting fed up with Chloe. "What if he comes back and it isn't his?" he asked her, wondering if her plan had a flaw.

"It has to be his!" Chloe stated, sounding like a reassuring statement for herself rather than an answer for Tyler Rorke.

"No, it doesn't," Tyler laughed, astounded by her stubbornness. "It could easily be mine." Then, he stopped to think. "Chloe, are you even pregnant?"

"Yes!" she shouted; Chloe couldn't believe that no one believed her. She didn't throw up for no reason; that would be completely unladylike.

"Then I could be the father, too," Tyler finished, proving his point.

"Fine, Tyler," Chloe said, wanting to end the discussion so she could focus as they pulled up by the venue. The other two cars had pulled into their reserved lots, making sure no one else was able to access them as they entered the stadium. The only way Chloe could see Eddie would be at his meet and greet before the concert; she had already reserved passes under a fake name. "It could be Eddie, and it could be you."

"At least that makes it more believable, I guess," Tyler answered after a moment. "If it's just the two of us, Eddie is more likely to be the father."

"Yeah," Chloe answered, trying to sound convincing. Chloe didn't know if she was trying to convince her or Tyler more; she would be able to forget that one night stand with the third option eventually.


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: Sorry I didn't update recently, guys. Been really busy with school and tests... I haven't been able to sleep, either, because Cody Longo (Eddie Duran) retweeted me when I sent him a drawing I did of him over Twitter! I swear, not even thirty seconds after I tweeted it, he retweeted it to everyone. HE is SO amazing, and I absolutely adore him...and now I can't sleep again tonight, haha, just from remembering all this! :D If you want to check it out...(go to Twitter and then add this into the URL...I can't post links on here...):**

** EnchantedTS13/status/250815480892366848**

"I don't think I can do this," Loren Tate said, pacing up and down the hallway backstage. Kelly had already done her up with her stylists; she wore a black, short dress, and knee high boots. She had agreed to meet halfway with Kelly on her looks; she wore the makeup, as usual, just to give her some kind of definition when the stage lights hit her. Her hands were in her hair, and hey eyes were wide; she had never seen such a huge place. The only times she'd seen such a venue were at concerts; specifically Eddie's.

Loren got chills when she thought about Eddie performing. She remembered being the young fan that somehow got into the concert and stood in the pit because of Jake. She remembered Eddie grabbing her hand and the magical feeling she got when they touched. She remembered that night well, and now she would get to experience it all from the other side; from Eddie's point of view.

Melisa stood at the far end of the hall, taping Loren's outburst. "You're amazing, Lo, just keep telling yourself that. It's true, you know." Mel added the last sentence in case it sounded like she wasn't sure of Loren's abilities.

"Thanks, Mel," Loren said, sounding thankful, but still a nervous wreck. Then, all at once, she dropped the act and panicked again. "Oh my God, I'm going to ruin Eddie Duran's career. I can't do this!" She began pacing again, but when she turned to walk away from Mel, she ran face first into someone who had just rounded the corner.

"Baby, look at me." It was Eddie. He spoke softly to her, hoping to reassure her because her time was up and she needed to go with him to meet and greets right then; Loren would take the stage only minutes after to introduce Eddie. Eddie cupped Loren's face with his hands and let out his breath, which made Loren calm. "First, I'm just Eddie, not Eddie Duran. You know me in so many more ways than they all do. Secondly, I need you to calm down, and come say hi to your fans. Can you do that?"

"I don't know," Loren said, all as she let out her breath she had been unknowingly holding. "They're your fans, not mine."

"Loren, they're your fans too; your website sold passes as well, remember?" Eddie knew his fans were Loren's fans. He would be there to comfort her, as long as she came with him. "Just pretend you're talking to me, okay? I know you can do it."

Loren nodded and stood up straight. "I'm talking to you. Yeah, I think that might help," she told Eddie.

With that, Melissa got her cue to follow them to a room down the hall. Eddie took Loren's hand and guided her into the large room that looked like her high school gym. Immediately, they were hit with shouts and screams from the people waiting patiently in line along the wall. Eddie raised a hand to wave to the line, smiling the whole way to the other end of the room where the camera and backdrop was set up. Loren held onto Eddie's hand tightly, almost afraid of all the sudden attention; she waved as well, though, making sure no one but Eddie sensed her fear.

Eddie let her hand go and shook the hands of the photographers and the venue security when he stopped at the backdrop. He guided Loren up to do the same, introducing her; he knew the security well from his other tour.

As the photographers took a blank shot of the backdrop to adjust the white balance on the camera, the security silenced the line with a shout. He began to read off rules, making sure everyone was on their best behavior for Eddie and Loren.

Loren watched as a group of girls in the front of the line were holding their hearts with their hands and fanning themselves with tickets. There must have been at least six of them, all dressed in tight, short dressed and high heels. Loren loved Eddie's fans, but she knew these girls would completely blow past her and on to Eddie; they reminded her too much of Chloe.

Eddie moved closer to Loren, and with his hand in the small of her back, he whispered in her ear. "Don't worry, they'll only let them up one group at a time. Follow my lead, and just make sure you give everyone equal attention. They'll give you a hug and tell you how big of fans they are, and then you'll take a picture with them and they'll be off, okay?"

Loren didn't respond, she didn't want to alert everyone of how unsure she was. She stared blankly past the girls and into Melissa's camera. Mel was positioned to the side, so she wouldn't be in the way of any of the cameras already set up. Melissa smiled when she noticed Loren looking towards her, and Loren finally relaxed a little.

Then, Eddie's voice boomed beside her. "What's up, New York?" he asked, calling to the long line of fans waiting to meet the two of them. Eddie walked a few steps away from Loren to address the line more personally. He was answered with many different voices; Loren couldn't make out what anyone said in particular. Eddie continued, smiling and laughing; he was clearly having a good time. "Alright guys, I'm so thrilled to meet you all, and so is my girl, Loren, here." Eddie extended his arm towards Loren. "So please, be patient, and I'll meet you up front!"

Loren watched as the faces dropped on the group of girls in front. She read the blonds' lips: _did he just say his girl?_ This made her feel a little more confident inside; she was Eddie's and none of these girls would take her place.

The security guard let the rope drop and led the group up to Eddie and Loren. They were all repeating "oh my God, I love you, Eddie," and other things similar; Loren couldn't help but feel overshadowed. Eddie hugged them one by one and greeted them, replying with "thank you, I love you too."

Suddenly, the first one that got to hug Eddie turned to Loren and gave her a big hug as well. "You're Loren Tate! I love your song!" Loren, stunned, blinked twice before figuring out what to respond with. She decided to play it safe, like Eddie, and simply said "thank you," as she backed out of the girl's hug.

The blonds' friend came up beside her after she had hugged Eddie as well, and asked Loren if she would be in their picture with Eddie. Loren agreed after seeing a little bit of a reassuring nod from Eddie from behind the girls. They posed and took their picture, and as soon as she waved goodbye to the group, Loren felt more confident. The next couple came up, a teenage boy and girl, and she took the lead, leaving Eddie second in the greetings.

Eddie was amused by Loren's sudden confidence; he loved seeing her so alive, and he was glad it kicked in just in time for her to be a professional for the night. He watched as Loren was an angel to the next couple of groups in line, and he made sure to match her happiness with each one.

When the next couple walked up to greet the two, Eddie's face fell. Loren's did the same, after looking to see who it was.

"Out of my way, little girl," she heard Chloe Carter say as she stomped past her and to Eddie.

"Loren," Tyler greeted, trying to be civil. He didn't want Chloe to embarrass herself, but it was too late for that.

"I got a paternity test, Eddie," Chloe told him outright. There would be no games tonight; she knew she had little time to talk to Eddie.

"I'm sorry, you what?" Eddie asked, making sure he heard Chloe right. "Get out of here, Chloe. Now is not the time for your games."

"Look, Eddie," Tyler said, jumping in. "I told her not to come, but you know she never listens. Just humor her and agree to see the results tomorrow morning."

"It's not like you have to wait, though," Chloe said, adding to what Tyler said. "I know it's yours."

Eddie was furious, but he couldn't let his anger show in front of the fans still waiting for their chance to meet Eddie and Loren. "If it's mine, you can call me," he told her. "Don't lie to me, Chloe; I _will_ ask your doctor."

With that, Chloe crossed her arms and smiled. "Fine, I guess I'll see you out there, then," she finished, happy with Eddie's agreement to participate with her baby. "And don't bring the kid tomorrow," Chloe added, glaring at Loren.

"Chloe, just go. I know it's not mine; it's probably his," Eddie replied, pointing at Tyler. "Go, now, or I'll have security escort you."


	36. Chapter 36

Loren was nervous; she would be taking the stage in two minutes, exactly. She did her best to tune out the thousands of screams and shouts from the other side of the curtain; she had to remember that these people were screaming for her, as well as Eddie.

"Lo, you okay?" Melissa was filming Loren's crazy attempts of calming down; she was a mess, and Mel knew she needed a quick pep talk.

"I go out there in two minutes!" Loren answered, implying that she was not okay; how could she be?

"Lo, deep breaths," Mel told her, putting down the camera and holding Loren by the shoulders. "Eddie needs you to be awesome," she continued as Loren stared right at her, terrified. "I need you to do this."

That confused Loren. Her nerves vanished as she asked Mel why she would need her to pull this off. "Why do you need me to, Mel?"

"Because I know you can do this. I've seen you sing to yourself so many times, that I know this is what you were made for." Melissa knew she was right, and she could tell that Loren agreed.

Loren remembered when she recorded the song for Eddie's contest; even though she didn't want Mel to send it in, she was confident when it was being taped. Every time she sang to herself in her room, she was confident, and that's all this was. This time, everyone else would be singing along with her, because they were her and Eddie's fans. All she had to do was get through _Mars _and _Something In The Air_ with Eddie, and everything would be over and she could reflect on how well she did afterwards.

"Alright Loren, we need you ready in 30 seconds!" Loren and Mel turned as Kelly walked quickly up to Loren and put her hand on Loren's back, guiding her to the stage's side entrance.

Melissa pulled the camera back up and followed the two, ready to film Loren's first on-stage, world tour performance. Loren looked terrified, and she felt bad for her, but she knew she could do it if she tried. Mel watched as Kelly gave Loren a quick word or two of advice and shipped her out o the fans with her guitar; finally, Loren looked a little less afraid.

"She'll be fine," Eddie said from behind Mel, making her jump.

Eddie was bouncing up and down, keeping his body moving and "ready to rock". He wore a loose, hanging, black vest and tight jeans, like he always did for his shows. He was already starting to sweat, which brought of the rock star he was once again. Melissa was stunned; when he was like this, all she could think about was the rock star Eddie Duran, instead of Loren's Eddie.

Loren wanted to run away. Her first instinct as she walked to the middle of the stage was to mumble hi and call out Eddie, but she knew she had a job to do. She took a deep breath, began to run the rest of the way there, and started to play _Mars_.

* * *

Eddie dropped into the limo, breathless. As soon as the show ended, he and Loren were carted off through the fans outside the stadium and to their ride to the hotel. Melissa and Adam would meet them for breakfast in the morning; they were all exhausted and ready to sleep silently through the night.

"You were perfect," Eddie said, his voice smooth. He looked at Loren and then gently brought his hand up to her cheek and pulled her lips to his. He had been longing a kiss from her ever since the meet and greets had begun.

"You were better," Loren said back. She had survived the night, and as soon as she had started playing, she was as into the music as she was when she sang to herself in her bedroom months ago. She had done a duet of _Something In The Air_ with Eddie right after _Mars_, which the fans went crazy over.

Eddie smiled and shook his head. "No, no, you were so great out there, Loren Tate," he said, letting out a little laugh at the end. He couldn't take his eyes off Loren, but as he leaned in for another kiss, Loren looked down slightly, telling him not to. "What's up?" Eddie asked, wondering if he had done something wrong.

"Well, it's...Chloe," Loren answered, blushing. She fiddled with her hands in her lap, knowing how silly it was to be bothered by the ex again. When she looked up, Eddie let out a long breath.

"What about her?" Eddie asked, suddenly irritated that she was back and messing with them, even while they were on a different coast.

"She's pregnant, Eddie," Loren said, not understanding why he didn't remember the talk she had with him earlier. "How can you just ignore that?"

Eddie was taken aback by Loren's strong tone, but he knew she was right to ask him of this situation. "Well, she doesn't have any proof to show me that she's even pregnant, let alone that I'm the father."

"I know, but..." Loren couldn't find the right words, so she just cut her sentence short. She looked down again, wishing she hadn't brought the subject up.

Eddie sensed her trouble, so he did his best to pick the right words for Loren. "If she tells me it's mine, I'm going to double check with the doctor. If it's true, I'll be a part of its life, but I will never, ever, associate with Chloe Carter again, do you understand me?" Eddie cupped Loren's face with his hands and looked into her eyes. "I only love you, miss Tate."

Loren smiled and nodded in his hands. He said exactly what she wanted him to say; she wanted him to support the child, even if it wasn't hers.

"Hopefully she's not pregnant or it's not yours," Loren replied softly, letting Eddie know she would be okay.

Eddie smiled and kissed her forehead. He looked down at Loren and realized for the first time that they would be spending the night together alone, with nothing to distract them until morning. That was when he took the situation into his own hands and worked with it; he kissed her, light at first, making sure she was accepting. Then, he dove into her lips full force, kissing her with so much passion it left her breathless. Loren pulled away and laughed; she wanted to tell him she missed kissing him all night and remind him that the driver could witness everything happening at that moment, but before she could say anything, his lips were on her neck and chills were going down her spine.

As far as Eddie was concerned, there wouldn't be any sleep tonight.


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N: There was so much drama on the Tumblr Hollywood Heights tag that I had to quit the stuff about the show for a while. It's back now, though, as long as everyone is getting along.**

_Duran And Tate Own The Night_, the headlines read.

Loren woke up to an empty bed, the sheets thrown everywhere and her hair a mess. The only thing she wanted to know about, though, was how she did on her first night of her tour with Eddie Duran. Nothing about the night mattered more. Well, she shouldn't tell herself that, because the rest of the night was pretty special as well.

Eddie had more strength than Loren understood the night before. She didn't know how he did it; he jumped around on stage for nearly two hours and then came right back to the hotel and continued to roll around with Loren in bed for an additional two hours.

Bits and pieces flashed through Loren's mind quickly as she woke up and made her way to the kitchen. Eddie's body was warm; blazing, in fact. His breath was loud in her ear, and his chest was pressed close against hers. She could feel him shiver and felt his sweat drip onto her, but it didn't bother her; Loren felt closer to Eddie than ever.

Loren yawned a big yawn and scratched her head as she entered the kitchen of the suite. Wine glasses still sat on the living room table; Eddie knew she was under age, but she only had a half of a glass, so it would be okay.

Loren smiled and grabbed a bottle of water from the mini fridge and made her way back to the living room to call for Eddie. She assumed he would be in the suite somewhere, but didn't see him after she roamed the area and got her morning drink. She sighed when he didn't respond to her; he had to be somewhere.

She made her way back to the bedroom to try calling Eddie's phone, but before she could, she noticed it sitting on the bedside table holding down a piece of paper. She picked up is phone to retrieve the note, but before she read it, she saw Eddie's screen light up. It read: _1 New Voicemail_ clear and center on the lock screen.

Loren, knowing she shouldn't, dialed Eddie's voicemail; she thought for a second that maybe he forgot his phone and called it to locate it. She hit his pin when asked; his password was an easy 1234. Loren rolled her eyes to herself; if anyone would take the time to guess, a lot of his personal stuff could be easily broken into.

Then, Loren was greeted with the robot answering her call.

"You have one new message. First new message, sent today at 10:01 AM."

Looking at the clock on the bedside table, Loren noticed it was 10:05 AM, a mere four minutes after the message was left.

"Hey Eddie, it's me." Loren recognized Chloe's voice on the recording instantly. "Look, the baby isn't yours." This relieved Loren; she always had a feeling it wasn't Eddie's, but she was glad she could at least hear it for herself finally. After a long pause and a heavy sigh, Chloe continued. "It's not Tyler's, either. I need your help. It's this other guy's...his name is Colorado. Eddie please call me back, I'm in trouble. And don't tell the valley girl."

_Did I just hear her right?_ Loren thought to herself, clicking the phone call off and setting Eddie's phone down on the bed next to her. _Colorado? The guy that Phil, Mel's brother, was helping steal? How in the world did they know each other?_

Loren shook her head and picked up the note that Eddie had left her; she wanted to forget the message for now.

_Loren,_

_ Jake called me over to discuss the reviews. Breakfast is in the kitchen in the cupboard. Just cereal, sorry. Love you,_

_ Eddie_

Loren smiled; she loved when Eddie was cute like this. She also loved seeing his animal side the night before, but they were two completely different people. She set the note down and decided to change before she ate and began her day; she fiddled through her suitcase, but didn't find anything she felt like wearing around the rest of the day. She would just be on a plane ride for most of it, so she decided to snoop through Eddie's suitcase and pick something comfy of his to borrow. Plus, Loren knew Eddie thought she looked hot in his clothes; he had told her several times after she stayed the night at his penthouse in LA.

She opened it quickly, and since the pocket wasn't zipped closed on the top flap, she dumped a bunch of Eddie's small toiletries out on the floor in front of her. She picked them up carefully, not wanting to ruin anything of Eddie's.

There was a phone charger, an electric razor, Advil just in case the days got long, a comb, and his deodorant. She dropped them in the pocket, and then felt around under the bed to make sure nothing was left. However, her hand stopped when she felt something she wasn't prepared for: a small, velvet covered box.

She swallowed a lump in her throat and pulled it out slowly from under the bed; her heart was stopped because she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

A note was attached to the box, held onto it by a rubber band. It read: _For Loren, for when you're ready._


	38. Chapter 38

Loren took the rubber band off of the box slowly, not wanting to damage the box or accidentally break the rubber band. She held her breath and opened the box slowly, almost afraid to peer inside and see what was waiting for her.

Inside the box was a small, silver ring. A decent sized, square stone rested in the middle, surrounded by two smaller stones on either side. It was simple, something Loren liked; not too much but not too little. It was nothing like the ring he gave Chloe, and she liked that even more.

She gently pulled it from its resting spot in the cardboard and tried it on for size; it was a little big, but Eddie could get someone to fix that easily.

For a moment, Loren looked at her hand and analyzed the ring and how it looked there. She wasn't sure what she thought of it; just a few months ago, she was dreaming of even knowing the big rock star Eddie Duran. Now, she was dating the guy, and he was already thinking about proposing to her. She never had her daydreams end in marriage; frankly, they never got that far because Loren was usually thrilled enough at the thought of hugging Eddie back then.

She slipped the ring back off and slid the tip of her index finger across the smooth silver. She could feel it's cool surface underneath her skin; she couldn't believe she was actually holding these pretty little diamonds.

Loren tilted the ring, watching it sparkle in the sunlight that was shining through the window by the bedside table. Something caught her eye and she paused to look closer; there was a glimmer as the sun hit an engraving on the inside of the band. It took a minute for her eyes to adjust to the tiny writing, but once they did, Loren could clearly make out the four letter name on the inside; _Katy_.

"Loren? Are you up yet, babe?"

Suddenly, Loren heard the sound of the door to the room closing loudly from the living area. She jumped and quickly shoved the ring back into the box and made sure the rubber band and note were attached to the outside just as she had found it. Then, she quietly slipped the box into Eddie's suitcase again and slammed it closed.

"Eddie?" Loren asked, rushing out of the bedroom, trying to hide her guilt. Her head was spinning; had she really just found Katy Duran's wedding ring in Eddie's suitcase? Was he really going to propose?

"I'm in here!" Eddie called, grabbing himself a bottle of water from the mini fridge, just as Loren had done. "Did you sleep well?" he asked her when she arrived in the living area outside of the bedroom.

"Yeah, fine," Loren said, running a hand through her hair to calm herself down and rearrange her thoughts.

"Everything okay?" Eddie asked. He looked Loren up and down before letting out a short laugh. "Babe, why are you digging your nails into my shirt like that?" he added when he noticed how tense Loren's hands were.

Loren stood still, blushing from embarrassment. She had stupidly forgot to change into new clothes after the accident in the bedroom, and now it was obvious that something was on her mind. "Oh, I was going to borrow your shirt for the day," she said sheepishly, trying to convince Eddie that that was all that was wrong. "I guess I just feel like I ruined the surprise."

Eddie eyes Loren up. Her eyes weren't meeting his, which was an instant alert for him. She was hiding something, and he would find out what it was one way or another. Loren also only clenched her fists like that when she was thinking hard about something. Eddie knew something was up, and he hoped it wasn't something he had done.

"Is that all?" Eddie asked, not convinced. "I didn't hurt you or anything last night, did I? Or are you mad because I wasn't there when you woke up?" Now Eddie's mind was spinning; had he upset Loren?

"No, no," Loren said instantly; in all honestly, that really was the truth. Eddie hadn't done anything really "wrong", just unexpected. Loren desperately searched her mind for an out; there had to be some way to cover this up. If Eddie really did want to propose to her, Loren wouldn't ruin it by bringing it up now.

"Okay..." Eddie said, still nervous. He walked to Loren and took her hand in his, furrowing his eyebrows, trying to make sense of why she was so tense. "You still want to see your friends for lunch, don't you?" he asked. Hopefully he would be able to change the subject and they could move on; he would just ask her about all of this later.

Loren wasn't paying attention, though. Instead, she was looking down; down at her hand in Eddie's. It was her left hand; the hand she would be wearing Katy's ring on if she were to say yes. _Maybe the fact that can picture the ring on my hand is a good sign_, she thought.

Eddie finally managed to interrupt Loren's thoughts, making her jump. "Loren?"

"Yeah?" she answered, making sure not to give anything away by staring at her hand for too long.

"You just completely ignored me. What's up?" Eddie asked, dropping her hand. "Do we need to talk? About us?" he added, hoping she would say no.

"_What_?" Loren asked, taking in a huge breath of air in shock. "No, Eddie, of course not!" She violently looked for something to use as an excuse, but all she could think about was the ring.

Finally, though, it hit her; her one way out of this conversation. "It's not about us," Loren started, this time making sure to make eye contact with Eddie. She hesitated, picking her words carefully. "Chloe called your phone while you were gone. I guess you left it here, so I checked the voicemail after the alert made me jump." She watched as Eddie closed his eyes, frustrated. Her next words relieved him, though, making his shoulders sink as the weight lifted off of them. "Her baby isn't yours."


	39. Chapter 39

**OMG big thank you to those of you who are on Tumblr and told me to tweet Brittany the picture of what I've done on my new drawing so far!**

**I woke up this morning to her tweet back, saying it's "incredible"!**

**I love you all; now I have a tweet from Brittany AND Cody! I hope you guys still like this story...keep the feedback coming; it inspires me!  
**

* * *

When Eddie heard what Loren told her about what Chloe had said in her message, he was silent for a good few seconds. This worried Loren, but she figured he was just processing it. All of a sudden, he grabbed his phone off the table, stalked off to the bedroom, and paced back and forth between the bed and the bathroom. Loren followed, sitting on the bed.

"You listened to my messages?" Eddie asked Loren, his voice cold and hard.

Loren was taken aback by this; she had never heard Eddie's voice so harsh towards her. This was the tone of voice he used when he was arguing with Jake about the new music and the label. "Eddie, I didn't delete it," Loren told him, making sure he knew she hadn't messed anything up on his phone. "I only listened because I didn't see your note, and I thought maybe you left and forgot your phone so you called to see if it was on you," she continued after Eddie didn't answer.

Eddie finally looked up and stopped his pacing, letting his gaze rest on Loren. "I thought the trust issues ended with Chloe," he said coldly, not realizing how much he was hurting Loren.

With that, Eddie grabbed his wallet from the bedside table and zipped up his suitcase. "I'll see you on the plane," he told her, throwing on his sunglasses and hat to cover himself while he was in public.

Loren already knew he wasn't going with her to see Mel and Adam. She would go by herself, but she knew she would just tell them Eddie wasn't feeling well and Jake had a busy day planned for him, so he needed his rest until later; they would buy it.

Eddie almost turned to walk to the front door, but something caught his eye first. He stared at the shirt Loren was clutching in her hand, forgetting she was holding it. Like lightning, he snatched it from her hand; he acted with such force, Loren wasn't sure who he was right then.

"You brought your own clothes, so wear them," Eddie told her before finally leaving. He didn't slam the door behind him, though, which let Loren ease her worries for the time being; he wasn't _that_ mad.

* * *

Eddie had called Max, who was back in LA with Nora the night after his fight with Loren. He knew he had acted out of line, but when he tried to talk to her on the plane, she made sure she had something to tell Kelly or Jake, or even just a reason to be by herself.

"Hey, pop," Eddie said quietly after the plane landed in Boston early in the morning. "It's Eddie." It was nearly two AM where they were, but back in LA, they were three hours behind; it was only eleven PM, so he knew he would catch Max before he left MK for the night and headed to bed.

"Hey!" Max answered, happy to hear from his long lost son for once. "How's the tour? You know, you don't need to be a stranger."

Eddie laughed; leave it to his father to make a little bit of a joke out of the long distance, busy start to the tour. He missed home, especially Max; but he didn't miss the rest of the drama, like Chloe, who he had left behind in New York, or so he hoped.

"Sorry," Eddie replied, sighing. "The tour is fine, I guess." He knew he wasn't convincing; Max instantly picked up on his awkward tone of voice and started the questions about Loren.

"What's the matter?" Max asked, rolling his eyes to himself. He knew the two would work it out, but he was always willing to offer his advice.

"Loren listened to a message on my phone earlier and I snapped at her. It just reminded me of Chloe, you know?" Eddie sighed himself, frustrated. Then he continued, explaining why he had been so mean to Loren. "I was worried it was a message from the jeweler's or something...about the new engraving."

"Well, was it?" Max asked, now completely attentive.

"No, it was just Chloe being dramatic," Eddie said quickly, not wanting to think about what stunt she had pulled the day before. "I feel bad, but now she doesn't want to talk to me."

Max smiled to himself; he knew how girls worked. One minute they are fine, but the next they could be polar opposites and moody; it's just how it works. "Your mom was like that, you know," he told his son.

"Mom? Nah," Eddie said, laughing a bit; he was glad his dad could lighten the mood so easily.

"Yeah," Max answered in a matter-of-fact tone of voice. Eddie could picture him nodding into the phone conversation, like he would if he were there. "You know, when she got mad at me, which wasn't that often, but believe me it happened... Well, she would just want her space for a few days, and then everything would be fine when we started missing each other."

"You think Loren's like mom?" Eddie asked, seeing the connection.

"Maybe, maybe not," Max answered. He knew this wasn't that helpful of a response, but he didn't know Loren's ways when she was mad; he had always only seen her calm and collected.

"Thanks, pop," Eddie said back after he understood his dad's response to his question.

"Hey, Eddie?" Max asked, catching Eddie before he hung up. "How is it?"

Eddie was confused at first, but then his lips formed a smile as he realized what his dad was talking about. "Mom's ring?" he asked. "It's in good hands, pop."

"Good. I miss it, but I know Loren will love it."

"You're right," Eddie answered, confident. "It's beautiful, just like her."


	40. Chapter 40

Eddie opened his eyes and took a deep breath. Morning light shown through the hotel window.

When the plane landed, Loren had gotten off with Kelly, instead of Eddie. She signed autographs for the fans like she knew what she was doing and pretended not to want Eddie's advice, even though Eddie could see her glancing at him every now and then to make sure she was doing everything the right way. She was so cute when she did that; he loved the way she looked up to him.

Eddie put on a fake smile and gave the fans what they wanted; his autograph and some pictures. He and the rest of the crew quickly made their way from the plane stairs to the limos waiting for them, trying to race through the fans as fast as possible. Eddie hated missing everyone, but he was tired and Loren seemed overwhelmed. It was a complete shock that these fans were out so late; it was nearly two thirty in the morning, but there they were, all standing and cheering the two stars on.

Once Eddie remembered this, he remembered being taken to the hotel for a night's sleep before the Boston interviewers got to Eddie and Loren the next day. They had a day before the concert, but their schedules were still full.

Eddie rolled over from his side to his back; he was in the bed, which seemed like a good sign. He was even more relieved when he turned completely over and felt Loren sleeping next to him. She was turned away from him; it was obvious she was still mad, as she should be.

Eddie sighed and turned to lay on his side so he could face her back. He snuggled up to her, holding her to him while she slept. He loved the smell of her hair, the warmth of his skin, and everything else that came with having her in his bed. He hated her being so mad at him; he had to make things right, and soon.

"Loren?" Eddie asked in a whisper.

Eddie rested his cheek on her shoulder and took her one hand in his. He could hear her steady heart beat as she rested; it was calming, like the quietness before the storm came. This time, though, he wouldn't let there be a storm.

"Babe," Eddie said, trying to wake her up again. He didn't want to startle her and make her even more irritated with him, so he tried his best not to rattle her around too much. "Lor-en," he said again, in a sing-song voice. This time, she stirred, which made Eddie smile.

Eddie laughed out his next few words, trying to be as happy as possible. "Good morning, beautiful," he said softly, squeezing her hand.

Loren pulled her hand from Eddie's the moment she realized how they were positioned. She stayed on her side, almost as if she were stunned, and stared at the wall. Eddie heard her inhale slowly and hold her breath; he knew he hadn't won her back yet.

"I'm so sorry, Loren," Eddie said quietly, hugging her instead of holding her hand. If she wouldn't let him hold her hand, he would hold her entire body to make her feel his presence. "I never meant that stuff," he added once Loren didn't reply.

"You still said it," Loren snapped back. There was no "good morning" or even a "hello" in return to Eddie's loving tone of voice. She made it clear he had messed up, that was for sure.

"I know I did," Eddie replied, letting out a sigh to calm his stressful nerves. "You haven't let me forget..."

As soon as Eddie said his last sentence, he knew he shouldn't have. Loren stiffened immediately and let out a long breath. Eddie could feel her grab the sheets in her hand and dig her nails into them.

Finally, she spoke. "What was that?" she asked, trying her best not to be such a jerk back to him; if he wanted to act like that, fine, but two wrongs never made a right, so there was no point in her treating him poorly like that, too.

"I didn't mean that," Eddie said, flustered. He was frustrated and couldn't find the right words to say to Loren.

Eddie's cheek was still rested on Loren's shoulder; she hadn't pushed him off yet. She just lied there, making sure she was making him uncomfortable. Loren felt Eddie's breath on her arm, which made her shiver and calmed her down, but she wouldn't give up the fight this easily. He may be shirtless, warm, Eddie Duran, the rock star, but right now, he was Eddie Duran, the guy who would be sleeping on the couch the next night.

"Then why did you say it?" Loren asked, wanting to know why he kept saying things he "didn't mean".

"I'm just frustrated, babe," Eddie told her, his body relaxing and giving in. He couldn't force himself to be stressed first thing in the morning, and he couldn't force himself to fight like this forever. "Loren, I love you, and I'm sorry. For what I just said, and what I said yesterday." There was still no reply from Loren, so Eddie continued. "Loren I thought the message was something else, so I freaked out."

Loren was interested now; she dropped the fight for the time being and gave Eddie her full attention. "Someone else? Like who?"

"Something for you...a surprise," Eddie told her slowly. He was picking his words wisely, making sure he didn't hurt her anymore and making sure he didn't give the engraving on Katy's ring away.

Loren was quiet, so Eddie hugged her tightly again. He closed his eyes, holding her close, and never wanted to let go. She could be mad at him for days, at the rate his stupid self was going; maybe he wouldn't need the ring after all.

Or, maybe he would. It was simple; something Loren couldn't be mad at him for.

In seconds, Eddie felt the words slipping through his lips. "Marry me."


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N: Thank you all for the reviews! I love hearing everyone's ideas! I promise I'll try to make some of them happen... So far, I've had ideas for a fight with a make-up scene with Eddie and Loren, more Melissa and Loren time, and bringing Loren's dad into the mix, etc. I'll try my best to work some of these things in!**

**I also want to say THANK YOU to everyone who helped me tweet my latest drawing to Cody, Brittany, and the rest of the HH cast! Brittany saw it before it was finished, and Cody saw the finished product today! Meredith (Lisa) also tweeted about it today! All three of them saw it so far, and tweeted about it, which made my day so amazing! This couldn't have been done without all of you, though, so thank you!**

* * *

"I'm sorry, _what_?!" Loren asked, jumping out of Eddie's grasp and out of the bed. Her hair was messy and she had worn her sweatpants and an old tee shirt to bed. She looked cute, and that was perfect to Eddie.

Eddie smiled, finally happy to get her attention. He thought Loren would stay mad at him forever with the rate things were going, so he was glad there was at least some reaction from her this time. He loved everything about her; her smile, her eyes, the way she giggled when she was happy, the way she hugged him when she missed him because they were apart all day, and sometimes, even the way she looked when she was mad at him.

"Marry me," Eddie said again, not changing his words or denying a single thing he had just said. His lips stayed in a smile form as he waited for her next answer.

However, Loren was silent. She couldn't think of anything to say back; she was baffled and completely lost for words.

Eddie, taking this as his only chance to make this perfect for her, got out of bed and walked around the edge of it until he stood next to where Loren was standing. He only slept in his boxers, making the whole situation a little bit awkward, but that didn't stop a single thing he was about to do.

"Eddie," Loren said, rolling her eyes. Her voice was flat; she was clearly not amused by his appearance. "You're not even wearing any pants."

"You should be looking up here, miss Tate," Eddie scolded her, laughing his words as he said them. He loved it when she was irritated, too; it was almost like she was embarrassed.

Loren rolled her eyes a second time, growing more and more impatient with Eddie. "Look, what in the world did you just ask me?" she asked again, wanting answers this time. "How could you possibly think that's a good idea?"

"Miss Loren Tate," Eddie began, taking her hands in his. If Loren really wanted things over, then so be it. This was probably going to be his only chance, though, at making things right after he had just asked Loren to marry him, so Eddie took full advantage of it.

Eddie looked right into her eyes, never looking away. He watched as Loren blinked and shifted her gaze every now and then; he wasn't sure if she was feeling a little bit awkward or if she just couldn't get over the sight of him in barely any clothes, but he tried to ignore that as best as he could.

"Loren, everything you do is completely adorable to me, you know," Eddie continued. "I really hate myself sometimes, too, because I could have had you all that time that I was with Chloe. We never really talked about this, but do you know that I remember every single time I met you before you won the contest? Given, I didn't know you were the same person that submitted the song, but still...

Jake told me everything you said the night of my concert back in LA. Loren, just like you said I changed your life and my music made you feel alive, you do the same to me. I remember you in line at my album signing. Loren, that thirty seconds stayed in my mind the whole time. I couldn't place who you were, but as soon as you left I figured it out; you were the girl from the concert. You were the one I felt that connection to when I grabbed her hand from the stage. I just couldn't leave because I had myself committed to that signing. Had I known anything about your life then, I would have come to visit you at work the second the signing ended.

I remember you leaving MK, when you somehow managed to get in. I had just seen that picture of Chloe kissing Tyler. I hate to admit that I even believed her for a second, but that's beside the point. Loren, you came out and talked to me, not as _the_ Eddie Duran, but just as a guy who needed some spirit lifting. I barely knew you then, but you helped me like you help any of your friends or family.

But most of all, Loren, I just remember the girl who I had to convince to play her song at MK. I knew even before the finals of that contest that your song was the one I wanted, but I couldn't play favorites, especially to someone Jake originally crossed out of the finals. You were just the person tweeting me lyrics then, but as soon as you walked in, even though it was pretty last minute, I saw who you were and I was so thrilled inside."

Eddie took a deep breath; he hadn't stopped his rant about Loren at all. He just kept going, reminding her of every little thing that she may or may not have already known. He finally caught his breath and looked down at the ground; he was almost embarrassed by all of these memories. Eddie felt stupid; not because he was telling Loren all of this, but because he hadn't realize how much of a leech Chloe was back then.

"Loren, you turned my life around. Somehow, you fixed me when I was broken; I didn't even realize it until you came along. You're my breath of fresh air, and I hate to see you mad at me." Eddie looked back up, right into Loren's eyes. She decided to finally look at him, knowing everything he was saying was tugging at her heart.

With that, Eddie smiled once again, and back up slowly. Carefully, he kept Loren's left hand in his and got down on one knee in front of her.

"Oh my God, Eddie, please don't do this!" Loren shouted, knowing what was going to happen. "Eddie, we've only been a couple for a little more than four months! Please, just get up!" Loren knew she was killing his confidence, but there was no way he could be proposing to her now. She would forgive him, of course, but there was no need to rush into things.

However, seeing Eddie kneeling there, not afraid of a single thing in the world, made Loren feel more alive than she had ever been; more so than Eddie's music made her feel from the very beginning of all of this. Could she say yes?

There was no time for thinking, though; everything happened so fast.

"Eduardo? Hey...whoa..." Loren turned, looking at the doorway. There stood Jake, looking as cautious as Loren did. Loren knew this was mainly because of Eddie kneeling in front of her, but she couldn't help noticing that Eddie was still only in his boxers, making it into even more of an awkward situation.

Eddie didn't care, though. He didn't even turn to acknowledge Jake. All he cared about was right in front of him, and he wouldn't let it go without saying he had tried his damnedest at trying to keep it.

"Loren Tate, will you marry me?"


	42. Chapter 42

**A/N: I started a second fan fiction, called "These Are New Times" under the same name! Please take a look! It starts as a second season would...**

**For those of you asking me not to stop updating...don't worry! I'll still be updating as much as possible! I'll try to update both regularly...please understand, honestly, the only reason why I don't update as much as I used to is because I've been hit with so many tests for my courses lately! Once I have breaks...like this weekend...then I can update all the time!**

**Also, I love all the ideas you guys are sending me! Please know that I am taking them all into consideration! I just have to work them in somehow...**

* * *

Loren looked at Jake and then back at Eddie. She couldn't say yes, and it broke her heart. Eddie looked so happy; how could she turn him down like she was about to?

"Eddie," Loren said, looking back at Jake, who was still standing in the doorway, completely shocked. "Eddie, I..."

Eddie knew what was coming. He knew he had made a mistake. Everything he had worked so hard for was ruined. He had given Loren his all, and she still turned him away. Hurt, Eddie stood and threw his hands out to the sides while he let out a long breath of frustration.

"No?" Eddie asked, trying not to hurt Loren as much as she had hurt him. "Yeah, I get it. Just forget I asked; forget us!"

Eddie finished his interruption and stormed into the bathroom to get his change of clothes for the day. He wanted to leave the room completely, but he knew he might look a little crazy if he were to run out and past Jake in only his boxers. The hotel might have a problem with that, so it was best he put on some clothes first.

Loren ran after Eddie, knowing she didn't mean no for good. "Eddie, we've only dated for a few months!" It was no use though; by the time she got to the door, Eddie shot her a nasty glare and turned away. She flinched when the door to the bathroom slammed in her face.

"Loren, are you okay?" Jake asked, coming into the room to put his hand on her shoulder.

Loren forgot Jake was witnessing everything and did her best to keep her tears to herself. She turned to him and put on her best fake smile and nodded. She knew she would be fine; she just had to wait until Eddie was over everything and she could explain why she had said no.

"Yeah, everything will be fine," Loren said, silently trying to convince herself that what she just said was actually true.

"Good, because we need you and Eddie at your best for tonight; the fans will know it if you guys are faking," Jake told her. He watched Loren close her eyes and realized how selfish he was being; for the first time in a while, he knew this wasn't about how his clients acted in front of their fans. "And I know you guys are great together," he added quietly, smiling. He really meant what he said, and he hoped Loren didn't think he was making up an excuse to get she and Eddie to make up within the next few hours.

"Really?" Loren asked, smiling for real this time. She looked up at Jake, and when he nodded, she felt her nerves stop bugging her. "Thanks, Jake," she replied, and with that, she embraced Jake in a big hug that showed she meant her thanks.

"Now listen, can you do me a favor?" Jake asked after he and Loren parted. He hated to talk business, but this fight couldn't get in the way of their careers. When Loren nodded, he continued with, "good. You and Eddie have an interview in an hour in Kelly's room next door. So can you guys please be ready for that?" He saw the doubt in Loren's eyes, so he added on to his question. "You don't have to be made up," he told her. "Just be on speaking grounds so the reported sticks to questions about the musical aspect of everything."

That was something Loren could agree with; as much as they were mad at each other right now, their careers were important, and if they let it show that their relationship was struggling, the media would take complete advantage over it. The reporter for the evening local news they were meeting with would be all over that in mere seconds.

"Yeah," Loren agreed, smiling again as Jake backed away and headed towards their door. "And Jake," she said, catching him before her left. He turned and nodded his head towards her, encouraging her to continue. "Thank you," she finished.

Jake smiled back at Loren and then left; he had a busy schedule as well, and Loren understood that. Now that he was gone, though, she wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball and cry. She hated being sad; she hated crying at all. Sometimes, though, things got to her more than others, and it felt like the only way to get over them is to let it all out and put it behind her.

As she turned to go lay down on the bed until Eddie decided to finally storm out on her, though, she noticed the bathroom door cracking open and Eddie's fully dressed body poking out. He wore a light tee shirt and black, almost skinny cut jeans. He wore his skater shoes, of course, that went perfectly with the shirt; they were a dark black with simply white highlights that matched his outfit.

Eddie looked up from his stare at the ground and gave Loren a shy smile. It hurt her to see him smile at her when he was so mad; it was like he was trying to play a mind game with her. She was supposed to miss him after he had yelled at her for something she felt was right in her heart.

"I'm so-" Loren started to say, but instead, Eddie interrupted her.

"Loren, _I'm_ sorry," Eddie said, meeting her gaze. "You're right, it's too soon. I only asked you to marry me though because you wouldn't let me talk to you," he told her.

"I just..." Loren began, but she wasn't able to find the right words to make sense. Instead, she let out a scramble of words that almost seemed to form a coherent sentence. "I...you hurt me. And like before...the stone...it hurt. Like that cut..."

Eddie's heart ached; how could he be so mean to Loren, who was only saying no so they wouldn't have a failed relationship. She was referencing the cut that day on the hill at their spot. She was telling him that if he really ended things with her, it would hurt just as much as what she had done to herself that day. Loren had already gone through that pain once, and she didn't want to go back to such a dark place again.

Eddie knew what he had to say; this time, he was sure it wouldn't end badly. "Don't forget us, babe. We're not over, I promise."

Eddie watched Loren's shoulders drop in relief and her smile lift at the corners of her mouth. She took two big steps toward him and threw her arms around him; he pushed the door open fully so he was able to lift her, and held on to her like he would never see her again if he let go.

"I'll never let go," Loren whispered.

At once, Eddie knew what she was talking about. He closed his eyes in happiness, knowing she wasn't saying no for good, but only for the time being. When she was ready, she would say yes. When she was ready, Eddie would ask her again; he would propose for real, with a plan and hopefully some pants.

"I've never wanted to show you how much I love you more in my life," Eddie whispered back, still not backing out of their hug.

Loren, though, understood immediately, and was in full agreement of that idea. She laughed into Eddie's shoulder and that was his sign of approval.

Eddie pulled his head back from Loren's shoulder, and like that, their lips were together and Eddie was pushing Loren back towards their hotel bed.


	43. AN: Reasons & Future

A/N: Reasons for being MIA & the future of my stories.

Unfortunately, school has gotten the best of me. I thought I could do some chapters over Christmas break, but I wound up working a lot. I planned on writing some more now, but on top of school, one of my good friend's brothers just passed away in a car accident, so life has been pretty stressful.

I currently have two ongoing stories; These Are New Times and Down To Earth. I think I may be ending Down To Earth (it may or may not get an ending chapter), because it really has just become a story that seems to fake and made up to me that I'd rather just continue writing the other story. These Are New Times I will be continuing, but probably not until classes this semester are over.

Additionally, I may be going to spend a week and a half in London for a study abroad program this May. If that is the case, the updates may be pushed until the middle of June. However, I will be updating as soon as summer officially hits for me.

Thanks for keeping watch for my updates!

-Shannon


	44. Note

Hello my fellow HHers!

So here's what my new idea is: I'm beginning a side story to get my creative juices flowing back to me in order to continue at least "These Are New Times". It may not look like I've done anything with the stories, but I just simply haven't liked anything I've written because I can't get back into the swing of writing. I even went to England on a Literature Study Abroad trip with my college in May to try to get my love for writing back!

Right now, I feel inspired to write a story, but just not this one. Not all bad news, though! I am starting a new story in a completely different category, therefore I'll be able to come back to this one once I get a grasp on my writing again and be able to not get bored with the range of topics I'll be writing for both stories.

My new story will follow Sailor Moon, which I know is a HUGE difference in topics. I've always been a tiny bit of a nerd, but not majorly. Recently, with the reprinting of the SM manga and the release of reports about it continuing in 2014-15, I've reread the series and am simply tired of imaging what will fill the plot holes I see in my head. Although there may be another book or season of the anime, the release date is being pushed further and further into the future by the production company, so right now, this is something that is interesting to me. Please check it out under my stories, titled ARC: CHAOTIC MOON.

Thanks, loves!


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